The Siege of Artika Prison
by T-Rock14
Summary: When Sonic finally marries Sally, everyone anticipates a bright future. However, that anticipation is short lived, as a distress call from Roman's former master, Cain Roth, draws the Freedom Fighters to the prison where he is stationed in the Mobian country of Artika. But when they arrive, they make a terrifying discovery: The Imperial invasion of Mobius has begun.
1. Chapter 1: Wedding Bliss

**Chapter 1: Wedding Bliss**

 _ **Castle Acorn's private chapel, June 21**_ _ **st**_ _ **3239, 12:30 pm**_

"Relax, Sonic." Roman said as he helped Sonic adjust his bowtie for the umpteenth time. "Everything's going to go fine."

"Are you sure?" Sonic asked. "I'm not so sure."

"Marriage jitters, sonny." Uncle Chuck said as he patted his old friend's son on the shoulders. "Happens to everybody, including your parents. Goddess, you should have seen your father when he married your mother. He was almost peeing himself with nerves."

"Chuck!" Sonic pleaded. "You're not helping!"

"He kinda has a point, Uncle Chuck." Tails said to the older hedgehog, who had a bushy moustache covering his mouth and was a lighter shade of blue than Sonic. Like Sonic, Tails was wearing a tuxedo, though unlike Chuck or Sonic, two cylindrical objects hung from his hips: Lightsabers.

"Yeah. Your anecdote about his old man nearly pissing himself because he was so nervous won't exactly do much to help Sonic's nerves as you think, Chuck." Roman said. Like Tails, he was wearing his lightsaber on his hip, just so that in case something did happen, they'd both have something to defend themselves with. Sonic of course, had his speed.

The attention of all four individuals was caught when the doors to the chapel opened, allowing numerous people to step through, some of them members of the Freedom Fighters: Antoine D'Coolette, Rotor Walrus, Team Rose, Knuckles and the Chaotix, and several dignitaries, including some members of Sally's extended family, and the holy man who was to perform the ceremony.

Tails, who was Sonic's best man, turned to Roman and Chuck and said: "Better get to your seats, boys. Party's about to start."

Both men nodded and gave Sonic one last congratulatory hug before taking their seats: Chuck with the dignitaries, and an old friend of his: Dr Ellidy. Roman took his seat alongside the Freedom Fighters, but most of all, he took his seat next to his girlfriend and the love of his life: Ashley the Cat.

"I was wondering if you would ever join me." Ashley said as she lay her head on Roman's shoulder

Roman wrapped his arm around Ashley's waist in response. He hoped he looked alright because Ashley, as usual, looked absolutely stunning.

She was wearing an elegant light navy-blue gown that hugged her figure, accentuating the parts of her body that she knew most males in the room had their eyes on. The dress itself also showed a bit of cleavage, more than Ashley would have preferred, but it was better than nothing. For her feet, she was wearing high heels of the same colour.

Suddenly, the familiar notes of 'Here comes the Bride' began playing, and everyone rose, with many turning their attention to the entrance, and gasping at the sight of the beauty that came from behind them: Sally.

Roman, even though he had an equally beautiful woman at his side in Ashley, could not help but be entranced by the sight of the angel that stood before them.

Sally looked absolutely amazing, to say the least. She was wearing a simple strapless white dress that trailed behind her, so much so that were the Maid of Honour, which was Bunnie, been walking any closer, there would have been an accident, and the wedding would be ruined. Furthermore, the dress left most of Sally's body to the imagination, save for the chest area, as the dress showed off a hint of cleavage, enough so to have everyone's attention on her. Additionally, for the most part, Sally's dress hugged her figure, save for the lower parts of the dress, which were the parts of the dress trailing behind. For the occasion, she had grown her hair long, so that it reached past her shoulders, though it still remained in the style she had long had it in. Her blue eyes brimmed with happiness. The day she had awaited for so long had finally arrived.

Next to her, arm in arm with his daughter, King Acorn stood resplendent, in full royal dress, that being a blue tunic that reached his knees, blue trousers, a red sash crossing his chest and a ceremonial sword at his hip. His golden epaulettes now had a new addition: A red cape that hung from his shoulders. Atop his head rested his crown, signifying to all that he was king. His eyes brimmed with prideful tears.

Finally, the two reached the altar, where the holy man, as well as Sonic and Tails, awaited them,

Sonic allowed himself to face his soon-to-be wife, and for a while, he was lost for words. "Sally…" He finally managed to say, but was interrupted, as Sally herself replied:

"I know, Sonic. I know."

Thus, the wedding began.

* * *

 _ **About half an hour later…**_

Roman fought off the threat of dozing off once more as the wedding proceedings continued. He was easily bored at these occasions, which was no surprise, as he was a person of action, not of sitting around doing nothing. Yet right now, he would not wish himself elsewhere, as he watched two of his best friends in the entire galaxy finally tie the knot after nearly three years of being together. To pass the time, he occupied it by looking at a random Freedom Fighter, or Knuckles, or one of the Chaotix, and pulling a silly face. Though he had avoided Charmy for now. The last time he had done it to Charmy on an occasion such as this, Charmy had burst out laughing. So for now, he wasn't going to do it to Charmy.

Ashley noticed her boyfriend's antics and whispered: "When are you ever not messing around?"

"Battles." Roman replied in a calm whisper, kissing Ashley on the forehead.

"I meant apart from battles." Ashley replied with a raised eyebrow.

Roman shrugged. "Depends on the seriousness of the situation. This isn't a serious situation. It's a happy moment."

Ashley rolled her eyes. Roman never ceased to find his way out of a rebuke. Be it through the threat of a prank, or through his sheer wit. Then again, his wit was one of the factors leading to her falling for him. With this thought, she once again leaned her head on his shoulder, wrapping an arm around Roman's waist and placing another on his chest, feeling his heart beat beneath it. She wondered sometimes how it was still beating, considering the punishment Roman had taken during the Clone Wars, and most recently, their little street war with her father, Frederick the Cat, who was now in prison. She trembled at the thought of her father. Even though he was far away from her, locked away in G.U.N's Maximum Security Prison, she still had nightmares about the night he had nearly achieved his aims. The night he had nearly killed Roman, and her.

Roman felt her tremble, and looked to his girlfriend. "Something wrong, Ash?"

Ashley nodded. "Just thought about _him."_ She whispered.

Roman frowned. Stroking his girlfriend's head-fur, he said: "Relax, Ashley. He's far away from us now. He can't hurt us."

"I know." Ashley said. "But it hasn't stemmed the fear I still have of him."

"Ashley, as long as I'm here, you have _nothing_ to be scared of." Roman whispered. He added to this with a gentle kiss.

Ashley held her boyfriend's lips against hers as she returned the kiss, before breaking it just in time for the vows:

"Do you, Sonic the Hedgehog, take Princess Sally Alicia Acorn as your lawfully wedded wife?" The holy man asked Sonic.

"I do." Sonic replied, without even thinking. He was too busy looking at his beautiful bride, Sally.

The holy man then turned to Sally, asking her: "And do you, Princess Sally Alicia Acorn, take Sonic the Hedgehog to be your lawfully wedded husband?"

"I do." Sally said, not even thinking either.

"Then, by the power invested in me by the Goddess Aurora, I now pronounce you husband, and wife." The holy man declared. "You may now kiss the bride."

Sonic wasted little time, lifting Sally's veil and kissing her every bit as passionately as he usually did, as a single tear of joy fell down his cheek.

Sally returned the kiss as well, multiple tears of joy falling down her cheek at finally marrying her knight in shining armour.

* * *

Roman got to his feet and started clapping, followed by the rest of the congregation, who erupted in ovation at the sight of the newlywed couple. Getting out from the pew and walking over to the newlyweds, who had broken their kiss, he gave Sonic a fierce brotherly embrace, before doing the same with Sally, tears of joy crawling down his cheeks. "Congratulations, guys." Roman said as he broke the hug. Turning away, he walked over to Ashley and wrapped an arm around her, watching the newlywed couple.

"Getting any ideas, Roman?" Ashley asked her boyfriend coyly. "We have been together for a year."

"Maybe." Roman replied. "I don't feel ready for marriage yet, but when I am, you'll know."

Ashley smiled before pulling Roman closer and kissing him on the lips, sighing as she did.

* * *

 _ **Castle Acorn Gardens, A few minutes later…**_

Roman grimaced as he felt something he hadn't felt in a long time, that being a major disturbance in the Force.

Ashley, who was seated next to him, noticed this and said: "Are you alright?"

Roman nodded. "Just felt a major disturbance in the Force." He whispered. "Something's not right."

Ashley sighed before taking her boyfriend by the shoulders. "Whatever it is, leave it be for now. Don't let it bother you. Like you said, this is a happy occasion."

Roman nodded again before feeling himself get tapped on the shoulder from behind. Turning to see Tails, he asked: "Yeah?"

"I sensed it too, Roman." Tails whispered.

Roman frowned. If Tails had sensed it, things were surely not good. After only a year of training, Tails had shown skill in most Force abilities, mastering them in a day at least. He was still not skilled enough to be on the level of Roman, which Roman had said would take a few more years, but Roman had assured Tails that one day, Tails would be equal to him in skill. And both of them had sensed the disturbance in the Force. He looked to Tails, who was now being told something by one of the king's men.

Tails nodded and stood up, tapping a spoon against the glass he had in front of him to get everyone's attention.

Promptly, everyone fell silent, looking at Tails expectantly.

Tails swallowed as he began: "Afternoon. Now, being the best man, I'm supposed to give some sort of speech. Those of you that know me well, will know I'm not exactly the best at this, so bear with me." He took a deep breath as he said: "I've known Sonic for effectively my whole life, ever since he found me as a baby. Since then, I've shared some amazing moments with him and the Freedom Fighters, such as a little prank me and Roman here pulled on him a few Christmases ago, before Sonic started dating Sally, which involved a lot of mistletoe, and Sonic getting shoved into Sally. That… Didn't end well. Especially for Roman's private area."

Everyone laughed as Roman rubbed his privates while Sally winked at him.

Tails continued: "Furthermore, I was lucky to be present when Sonic and Sally got together." He paused and then said to further laughs: "Finally." After the laughter had died down, he continued: "Over the next few years, I watched as Sonic and Sally went down a rollercoaster of a relationship. It had its ups and downs. But eventually, Sonic slowed down enough to allow Sally to catch up. And now, they're married." At this, Tails shrugged. "I guess my point is, that while Sonic may like to keep on moving, once he starts to really care about something, or someone, such as Sally, or me for that matter, he takes the time to let them catch up. I wish both Sonic and Sally all the best, but I hope they don't have too many children. I'm still too young for that many nieces and nephews!"

Everyone burst out laughing and gave Tails a round of applause as he hugged Sonic and Sally before retaking his seat.

Once seated, Tails looked to Roman, who gave him an a-ok gesture.

"Awesome job, Tails." Roman remarked.

Tails smiled as he lay back, happy that for the most part, his role for the day was done, and the celebrations resumed.

* * *

 _ **Half an hour later…**_

"Easy now, Sally…" Sonic said as he and Sally cut the cake, his hand on hers as the knife sliced into the cake, causing it to bleed crumbs ever so slightly.

Roman was nearby, waiting for a prime opportunity to do what he had been planning ever since the wedding date had been set. It had become a habit of his whenever he attended a wedding to pull a prank on someone. Now, it was all a case of waiting for the opportune moment.

With a gentle movement, the first part of Sonic and Sally's wedding cake was cut from it, with it rapidly going onto a plate nearby. This continued until everyone had a slice.

Roman instantly began to eat his slice, finding the sponge delicious. Then again, it had been baked by Vanilla, Cream the Rabbit's mother, who was widely regarded as the best baker on Mobius. To Roman, who had never partaken of any of Vanilla's deliciously baked goods up until this point, it was the stuff of dreams, baked to just the right degree.

"I hope you're enjoying that, Roman. Because it's the only taste you'll ever get from my baking."

Roman turned to see Vanilla standing there, glaring at him. She was wearing a burgundy dress that left much to the imagination, and a burgundy hat that looked flimsy and could fly off any minute. "True. But I won't stop pranking you unless you laugh. We discussed this last year. So, either get a sense of humour, or just continue to let me prank you. Simple." Roman said before eating the last of his cake, handing it to an attendant and walking away. Seeing Ashley nearby, talking to Amy and Cream. Walking over, he surprised his girl by jabbing her under the ribs.

Ashley jumped before turning to face Roman. "Will you stop doing that?"

"Nope." Roman replied before kissing her. Breaking the kiss, Roman bumped knuckles with Amy before patting Cream on the head. "Enjoying the day, girls?"

"Yeah." Amy said. "I may have been upset that Sonic's married Sally instead of me, but now, I'm over Sonic. I just hope I find someone."

Roman smirked and took the sakura hedgehog by the shoulders. "Amy, there will be someone. You just have to start looking. Someone with your looks shouldn't find that hard." Patting Amy on the cheek, he said to Cream: "Tell your mother her cake was delicious, by the way."

"I will." Cream replied, her brown eyes sparkling.

Roman ruffled her head fur before sighting his prank target, in the perfect spot, in front of everybody. Kissing Ashley on the cheek, he whispered in her ear: "Here goes." Before stepping into view and clapping his hands together to get everyone's attention. "Yo!"

Suddenly, everyone's attention was on him. The expression of the Freedom Fighters was a collective look of Here we go…

"It's become a habit of mine that every wedding I attend, I prank somebody. But who that person is, is another matter." Getting out a vial, Roman raised it in the air, so that all could see it. "This:" Roman said, "is a concoction containing a smell so bad that if you get it on you, no-one's gonna go near you for a week. Capiche?"

Everyone nodded.

Roman uncorked the bottle, and after teasing throwing it on several people, including the king, then threw it into the face of the last person anyone expected him to: Knuckles the Echidna.

* * *

"OOOOOHHHHH!" Everyone exclaimed as Knuckles staggered back in surprise, wiping the liquid from his face as the most infernal stench began emanating from him. Even he smelled it.

Knuckles then looked up at Roman. "You son of a…" Knuckles began before charging Roman.

Roman knew this was coming, and promptly legged it, much to the laughter of everyone.

Knuckles chased him all around the gardens, eventually losing sight of Roman. Cursing himself, he looked about himself and groaned: "Great. Now I'm definitely not getting laid by Shade tonight!" He suddenly felt a tap on the shoulder. Turning around, he saw Roman, who shrugged before then kicking Knuckles in the crotch and running away. Grimacing at the feeling, Knuckles cursed again before rising to his full height, resolving to get Roman back later as he walked back into the party, spotting Roman smirking. Ignoring Roman, Knuckles once again resolved to get Roman back at some point. Instantly, Knuckles walked up to his girlfriend, Shade who recoiled at the stench:

"Geez, Knuckles. You're definitely taking a shower when we get home." Shade remarked.

"Uh, you're forgetting that that shit will stay on him for a week." Roman said as he walked by, smirking as he added: "So, that means he ain't getting laid!" At this, he laughed and walked away.

Knuckles watched him go, muttering: "I'll get him someday."

"I'm sure you will, Knuckles. And regardless of how much you stink, I'll still stay by your side." Shade said encouragingly to her boyfriend.

Roman watched this before walking up to Sally, who had retaken her seat alongside Sonic. "Enjoy the prank?"

"I did." Sonic answered. "Even the Guardian of the Master Emerald needs to be made fun of sometimes."

"I agree." Sally replied. "Though I get the feeling that Knuckles will eventually get you back."

"The key word in that phrase is eventually, Sally A- I mean, Hedgehog." Roman replied.

Sally giggled. "Looks like my new name's gonna take some getting used to."

"Yes. By everyone." King Acorn remarked from nearby.

Roman smirked. "That's for damn sure, Your Majesty." He added. "Seen Ashley anywhere?"

"Unfortunately no. Haven't seen her since you pulled the prank on Knuckles." King Acorn replied.

Turning to Sally, Roman asked: "You seen her?"

"Yeah, she's over there, talking to some of the other guests." Sally said, pointing over to where Ashley now stood, talking to several dignitaries, which included Uncle Chuck.

Roman thanked Sally as he walked over and took Ashley by the waist, turning her to face him. "You okay?"

"Yeah. But now I'm in your arms, I feel a lot better." Ashley said. Looking to the people she had just been in conversation with, she said: "Sorry, but I'd like some alone time with my boyfriend."

Everyone voiced their understanding and left the two alone.

"Something wrong, Ashley?" Roman said, knowing full well that could be a reason Ashley wanted to be alone with him.

Ashley shook her head. "No. It's the complete opposite. It's just, the wedding dance is about to begin. And I just wanted you by my side as they started."

Roman smiled as he hugged his girlfriend, holding her close as they watched Sonic and Sally begin to dance.

* * *

 **Hello, and welcome to my latest Star Wars and Sonic the Hedgehog fanfic: The Siege of Artika Prison. This will be the 'Empire Strikes Back' to the 'A New Hope of the first three. This chapter will coincide with certain points in chapter two, which you'll see soon enough.**

 **On that note, please leave your reviews, and May the Force be with you. Always.**

 **T-Rock14**


	2. Chapter 2: Not Good

**Chapter 2: Not Good**

 _ **G.U.N's Maximum Security Prison, Artika, as the wedding ceremony started…**_

"Sir, the main wedding ceremony's about to begin. You want to watch?" Said a guard.

Former Jedi Master Cain Roth nodded, saying: "I'll be right there, lad." He himself had been invited to the wedding, but had messaged back saying that he wasn't one for those types of occasions, joking that he was too old to attend weddings. He wanted to say he regretted his decision now, but Roth dumbed it down. Being sixty three, he was a man set in his ways. Turning from where he now stood, he exited the main control room for the prison and walked along a large corridor, his steps echoing across the floor. As usual, accompanying his steps were the calls of many of the inhabitants of the prison who were cordoned off nearby. It was a sound he had grown used to, over the past year he had commanded the guards here. Stepping into the room he and the guards usually used to allow the inmates to watch things on the HoloNet, he saw most of his comrades that worked inside the prison watching the wedding. Folding his arms, he smiled as he saw the proceedings, even spotting Roman in the congregation. Roth smiled as he saw this. Roman had been like a son to him during their days as teacher and student, and he still felt that way even now. But he watched as the wedding of Sonic and Sally began in earnest:

"Dearly beloved, we are gathered here today to witness the joining of this man and this woman in holy matrimony." The holy man said on the HoloNet.

Roth watched this with a smirk. "So it finally begins." Looking to the men around him, he asked: "Hey, lads, raise yer hands if ye think King Acorn is going to need to extend the Castle in order to make room for all the wee babies that Sonic and Sally will likely have." At this, he raised his own.

The rest of the guards raised their hands with a hearty laugh, signifying agreement with Roth's question.

Roth scoffed and sat down next to the man he had grown to trust above all the guards in the room, an elderly looking brown furred lop eared rabbit named Butch. He was one of the most senior and respected guards in the prison, and as such, Roth trusted the Mobian's judgement.

"Hard to believe the Princess is finally marrying that ol' hedgehog." Butch said remarked in southern accented English. "Never thought I'd live t' see the day."

"Well, looks like ye have, Butch. And now there's nowt to do but sit and watch it all play out." Roth remarked as he slapped his friend gently on the back.

* * *

 _ **About half an hour later…**_

Roth and the others let out a massive cheer at the sight of Sonic and Sally kissing. Sitting back in his chair, Roth said. "Like I said Butch. You did live to see the wedding."

"So I did, Roth. So I did." Butch said.

Roth smiled and returned his gaze to the screen, smiling as he spotted Roman again, kissing his girlfriend Ashley. Roth's smile deepened at that sight. He'd supported Roman's relationship with Ashley since it had began, and he had started hoping that Roman would get on one knee and pop the question soon. He found Ashley to be Roman's perfect girlfriend, having a sense of humour that rivalled the young Jedi's, and had a personality that kept Roman in check. But what he liked the most was how they were together. Always having amusing conversations with one another, and just acting like any other young couple. He had never experienced love. Not with anyone, and not ever. He'd remained true to the Jedi Code, and to his ideals. Yet now, he was at that age where he started regretting not doing certain things he would have been able to do when he was younger. Such as having sex. He remembered Roman once joking two years prior while sitting on a bench on Coruscant on Roth's sixty-first birthday, that Roth was a sixty one year old virgin, shouting the information out to a pair of attractive women nearby. Roth had waved them off with an amused smirk. But now he regretted not taking the opportunity. Then again, he was old, he'd enjoyed life. His only regret, was that he hadn't lived it to the full. He was driven from thought as the alarms started blaring, signalling something having been picked up on the long distance sensors. Roth looked towards the control room, his jovial expression replaced by the hardened battle commander he was. Turning to the men, he commanded: "To yer stations, lads. Could just be another Artika Egg Army rescue attempt on old Eggie."

"Yes sir!" The guards affirmed as they filed out of the room, followed by him and Butch.

"I got a bad feelin' about this one, Roth." Butch said.

"Aye. Don't tell that to the others though, mate." Roth said, patting Butch on the shoulder as they reached the control room. "What do we have here, lads?"

"Several bogies, headed here fast. Look and move like snowspeeders." Said one of the operators.

"Sounds like the Artika Egg Army alright. Battle Stations, lads!" Roth commanded on the P.A.

Promptly, there came the clamour of the prison guards preparing to prevent the attempted rescue of anyone, especially the prison's most important prisoner: Dr Eggman.

Roth took his lightsaber from his belt, so that he had it at the ready in case of attack. And for another reason he was yet to disclose. He hadn't told anyone, even Butch, that he'd sensed a disturbance in the Force, having a funny feeling that something was coming. And if he was right in what it was, then they were in serious trouble. They'd already received reports of a G.U.N base in Efrika being hit, with the information drives looking as if they'd been stolen. Now, Roth suspected the same people that had hit the base in Efrika were now headed here. Though for whom was unknown. But Roth had a suspicion it was either Eggman, or the prison's other big prisoner: Frederick the Cat, one of Mobius' most prolific crime bosses before his defeat at the hands of Ashley, who was his daughter. With this grim thought, Roth continued to assist the men in preparing for the obvious fight they were headed into.

* * *

 _ **A few hours later…**_

"We're being overrun-"

"There's too many of-"

"Where's our reinforcements?!"

All of these messages caused Roth to nearly break the console with a pounding fist to the table. "Fuck!" Roth growled. Whoever the guys attacking them were, they were good. Roth gave them that.

"Looks like this may be it for us, Roth." Butch said as he rocked back and forth in his antiquated old man's rocking chair.

"Not without a fight, Butch. Not without a fight." Roth said, his facial expression resolute. Suddenly, one of the main guards rushed in.

"Sir! They've breached the outer walls! They're getting in." The guard said.

Roth scowled. "Then let's not keep them waiting. Let's go kick some arse." Turning to Butch, Roth said: "Stay here, mate. I need somebody to check out what's going on inside and outside the prison. I'll be back." At this, he, followed by the other guard, turned and headed out to battle, quickly reaching the main entrance to the prison courtyard, which had been reduced to rubble. "By the Force." Roth remarked. The guards currently outside had taken cover behind what would have been eating tables, which luckily, were made of metal, which for the most part was resisting the barrage of blaster fire it was getting. Scowling, Roth raised his saber-staff and ignited it, a green blade shooting out from both ends of the hilt. Spinning the weapon around, he leapt out from the doorway and charged the enemy, a mighty war cry escaping his lips as he swatted aside blaster bolts as if they were nothing. Despite not having been in combat in nearly a year, Roth had not lost his touch. Sighting a nearby enemy, obviously an Egg-Army Soldier, Roth advanced, slashing through the soldier's gun with one swipe of his lightsaber, and beheading the soldier with the next. Turning from that kill, Roth ducked underneath an oncoming blaster bolt, and with astounding agility for his age, cartwheeled over a few more before landing on his feet, using the momentum to spin and cut the next soldier in half. Spinning his lightsaber again, Roth turned to another soldier, and was surprised at what he saw.

The soldier now aiming his rifle at Roth was dressed similarly to how a clone trooper would have dressed when in cold weather conditions during the Clone Wars, but slightly different. A clone usually had a colour on his armour showing his rank, whereas the trooper he was facing did not. He was also carrying the new Blastech E-11 Blaster Rifle, the standard issue rifle for Imperial Military personnel. Realisation dawned on Roth's face as he instantly dodged the shot from the Imperial soldier, or Stormtrooper, as they were now called, and cut the soldier down instantly.

Soon after, the attackers retreated.

Roth watched them leave, thinking: What was that supposed to be? Something to soften us up? He looked towards the Stormtrooper he had killed, scowling. That Stormtrooper meant one thing: And that one thing, was not good.

* * *

 **Like I said, this chapter happens right alongside chapter one. Next chapter won't be structured like this, and will happen in normal time.**

 **Anyways, please leave your review, and May the Force be with you. Always.**

 **T-Rock14**


	3. Chapter 3: Hearing the News

**Chapter 3: Hearing the News**

 _ **A few hours later, Castle Acorn Dining Room…**_

"So, tell me again." Roman said to Sally. "Why aren't you and Sonic going on a honeymoon? It's not like Eggman's around to fuck things up."

"It's not that, it's just… I don't feel like a honeymoon's necessary." Sally said. She was still in her wedding dress, minus the bridal train. "Besides, me and Sonic are effectively moving into our new apartment near yours and Ashley's tonight. I think that's honeymoon enough."

"I suspect I'll have to plug up my ears to block out the sound of you screaming Sonic's name." Roman said.

Sally giggled. "Do you have to be so blunt?"

Roman raised an eyebrow. "Sally, if I was being blunt, I'd have said that I'd have to plug up my ears to block out the sound of you and Sonic fucking."

"Roman!" Ashley chided, slapping Roman's arm gently. "That's rude!"

"It isn't rude if the person you're saying it to is laughing their ass off." Roman said, gesturing to Sally, who was laughing at Roman's remark.

Ashley rolled her eyes. "I forgot how frustrating it can be to try to rebuke you for something."

"But you love me for it." Roman replied playfully, pecking his girlfriend on the cheek.

Sally smiled as she watched Roman and Ashley together. It reminded her of her and Sonic when they were only just starting off in their relationship. Her attention was diverted when Sonic re-entered the room, having briefly left to say goodbye to Knuckles and Shade.

"Hey, Sal." Sonic said, kissing his new wife on the lips briefly before sitting down.

"So, Knuckles and Shade get away alright?" Sally asked.

Sonic nodded. "Shade had to drive because Knuckles was, as you know, a bit tipsy."

"That's what happens when you hog the punch." Roman remarked as he re-entered the conversation. I'd hate to have to go home with that stinking lump. Not that I can say anything, 'cause I was the one that made him stink."

"You do realise he's going to try to get you back, Roman. Don't you?" Ashley asked.

"I know, Ashley. But the key word in that sentence is _try."_ Roman replied with a grin.

Ashley made to respond, but suddenly, her holo-projector began bleeping. Sighing, she said: "I've got to take this, guys. I'll be back." At this, Roman's feline girlfriend got out of her chair and walked out of the room.

* * *

When she had left, Roman turned to Tails, who was seated on the other side of Ashley, asking: "You alright, buddy?"

Tails snapped out of his thoughts and replied: "Yeah. I was just thinking about that disturbance in the Force we felt earlier. I have a bad feeling about it."

Roman leaned closer and patted his friend and Jedi apprentice on the shoulder. "Don't worry about it too much. We can talk about this later, okay?"

"Okay." Tails said, weakly smiling.

"For now, just sit back and enjoy the rest of today." Roman advised. "Your best friend's married now. Maybe after having a talk to him, you'll feel better."

Tails nodded before calling to Sonic: "Sonic! Does this mean I can finally get some sleep?"

Sonic laughed as he realised his friend's meaning. "Yes, my marrying Sally means you can get some sleep. Besides, Amy's given up chasing me, so I won't have to wake you up early!"

Tails chuckled as he got out of his chair and hugged Sonic. "Cool. And anyway, today's been great."

"Glad to hear it, Tails. Thanks for being the coolest best man ever." Sonic said as he broke the hug.

Tails smiled and returned to his seat, hand reaching for the lightsaber on his right hip, but finding it wasn't there. Rolling his eyes, he turned, reached out with the Force, and drew it back to him from Sonic's hand. "You should stop doing that, Sonic." Tails said.

"Couldn't stop myself." Sonic replied with a smirk.

Tails sighed and returned to his seat, shaking his head in disbelief. "Sonic's never going to stop doing that, is he?" Tails said to Roman as he sat back down.

"I could get him back, you know." Roman said to Tails.

"Thanks." Tails said. "I'd appreciate it if you did."

"I will. Right… Now!" Roman said, quickly whipping around and driving his elbow as hard as he could into Sonic's crotch.

Sonic let out a pained groan as he grimaced at the sheer pain his wedding vegetables were in right now.

Leaning in, Roman whispered: "Now you know never to steal Tails' lightsabers again. Because _this'll_ happen." At this, he patted Sonic on the back and turned to Tails. "Anything else?"

Tails shook his head. "Nope. You did all you had to do there."

"Thank you." Roman said. He made to say more, but then he noticed Ashley burst back into the room, looking all bewildered.

"What's wrong, Ashley?" Sally asked, having noticed as well.

Ashley sighed and sat down, saying: "I hate to disrupt the wedding, but G.U.N needs our help."

Roman sighed. "I was worried that might be the problem. Did you try to explain what we're doing?"

"Yes, but this is urgent." Ashley said.

"So, what's the problem?" Sally said, her happy smile having been replaced by her serious look.

"Artika Prison's under attack." Ashley answered.

Roman's eyes widened at the name. "Artika? Isn't that where-"

"Yes." Ashley said gravely. "It's where Roth is stationed. We just received a distress call from him."

* * *

As Roman digested this information, Sally sighed.

"Guess I was being too optimistic when I thought that the day I'd get married would go without a hitch."

"Whoever's attacking Roth is gonna regret interrupting mine and Sally's wedding." Sonic growled.

"Too right." Tails said. "Can't bad guys set aside other days to be assholes?"

Everyone looked at Tails in surprise. He hardly ever used language like that.

Tails looked at everyone and pointed at Roman. "It's not my fault my Jedi Master is a foul mouthed one."

"Why're you blaming me? Sure, I'm foul mouthed, but nobody's perfect." Roman protested. Taking charge of the conversation, Roman said: "I don't know about you, but I'm not standing aside while my former master is fighting for his life. He's the closest I've ever had to a father since my actual father died. I'm not gonna lose him without a fight."

"My thoughts exactly." Sally agreed. She made to say more when King Acorn re-entered the room.

"What on earth is happening?" King Acorn demanded as he walked in.

"Hate to burst the happy mood that a wedding brings, but it looks like duty calls, Your Majesty." Ashley said. "G.U.N's maximum security prison in Artika is under siege. They need reinforcements."

King Acorn's confused expression turned to a frown. One of disappointment that such a happy occasion was cut short by duty. "And they shall get reinforcements. I shall send an entire battalion out alongside the Freedom Fighters to assist in the defence of the prison."

Roman smiled. A battalion was seven hundred crack troops of the Acorn Royal Army. That would be more than enough to reinforce the guards at the prison. "That's awesome, as we all know who might be the person the attackers want to bust out."

Everyone fell silent at that, until Sonic spoke the name of the person they all had on their minds:

"Eggman."

* * *

 **(Gasps) Dun, dun, duuun! Who else? Who else? According to them, anyways. Little note, yes there will be a Dark Side Acolyte involved. The only question is, who is that Dark Acolyte? Find out by continuing to read this fic.**

 **Anyhow, please leave your reviews (I'm begging you), and May the Force be with you. Always.**

 **T-Rock14**


	4. Chapter 4: A Bittersweet Reunion

**Chapter 4: A Bittersweet Reunion**

 _ **The Sky Patrol, 22**_ _ **nd**_ _ **June 3239, 11:00 am**_

The doors slithered open as Roman entered the main bridge of the Sky Patrol. He had shed his ceremonial attire and donned gear he felt far more comfortable in: He was wearing an all-black set of winter combat gear, which consisted of a black hooded leather jacket with fur lining the hood, several layers of insulating clothing underneath that, black winter combat trousers, and his combat boots and gloves. His lightsaber hung on his left hip, and his blaster pistol on his right. Turning to where Sally was standing, he walked over and stood next to her, folding his arms. "Never thought this day would come."

Sally sighed. "You mean, you _hoped_ this day would never come." Since they'd set off in the Sky Patrol, The Freedom Fighters had been bombarded with the bombshell that the attackers, now confirmed to be the Artika Egg-Army, had been given help by the Galactic Empire.

Roman gave Sally a look before scowling. "Fine." His mood had been dark ever since he'd discovered the intel about the Empire being involved. Not even Ashley had been able to lighten his mood.

Sally frowned as she turned to face Roman. "I didn't mean to hurt your feelings, Roman. I was just correcting you."

"Do I look like I'm in the fucking mood for corrections?" Roman snapped as he rounded on Sally, who backed off, taken aback by Roman's fiery outburst.

Sally raised her hands in a placating manner, saying: "Like I said, I didn't mean to offend you."

Roman turned away and once again faced the main window, looking out across the frozen horizon of Artika. "Sorry. I didn't mean to scare you. It's just… I've found it hard to think clearly since I heard the news that the Empire was involved. And ever since we reached Artika, I've been feeling this dark presence nearby. Familiar, but dark."

Sally raised an eyebrow. "Familiar? In what way?"

"I don't know. But I'm guessing we'll soon find out." Roman said as he turned away from Sally and headed out the door, passing Tails on the way in.

"Rome, what's our E.T.A for heading down there?" Tails asked.

"No idea." Roman declared as he continued walking.

Tails followed him down the corridor and caught his arm. "Hey. You okay?"

Roman shook his head. "Not really. But right now, don't be concerned about me. Focus on the task at hand." At this, he pushed Tails' hand off his arm and continued walking

Tails watched him leave, troubled. In the brief exchange, he'd sensed Roman's thoughts through the Force. And from what he saw, he divined that Roman wasn't thinking clearly, as a result of… something. _Whatever this 'something' is,_ Tails thought to himself, _it's clearly not good._

* * *

 _ **Not too long later, Artika Prison Courtyard…**_

Roman jumped out of the landing craft Rotor and Tails had recently built for the Sky Patrol and surveyed the area, by now not liking what he saw. There already was debris strewn everywhere, mostly as a result of artillery strikes. While this could provide good cover for them, Roman knew this wouldn't hold for long. He was driven from thought when he heard the voice he had waited to hear ever since he heard about the attack on the prison:

"Roman!"

Roman turned in the direction of the voice to spot Roth standing a few metres away, looking grim. His face curling into a smile for the first time since Sonic and Sally's wedding the previous day, Roman bee-lined over and embraced Roth. "Glad to see you're alive, Roth."

"Not as glad as I am to see ye and the Freedom Fighters here." Roth replied.

"Glad to hear it. In case you were wondering, the troops King Acorn promised will be here, it'll just take time for them to mobilise." Roman replied. "Same with G.U.N's reinforcements, according to Ashley."

"Can't be helped. The main thing is, ye and the others are here now." Roth said as Sonic and Sally walked up. Walking over, he shook hands with Sonic: "Congratulations on finally tying the knot with Sally." Roth said before turning to Sally, whom much to her and everyone's surprise, he embraced. "Glad to see yer now a married woman."

Sally smiled. "Thanks. Though I haven't exactly had the time to enjoy the fruits of being married yet." At this, she looked over at Sonic and took his hand.

Roth chuckled before asking Roman: "Where's Ashley?"

"Gone to help mobilise the G.U.N reinforcements." Roman answered. "Ever since the reports of you being under attack came to their attention, G.U.N's Senior Command is all at sixes and sevens. Ashley's headed over to G.U.N HQ to try and speed things up."

"Nice." Roth replied before spotting Tails walking up. "Afternoon, lad. How's the training gone?"

"It's going good." Tails replied. "I've trained in Roman's style for a good few months now, and I've pretty much got it cinched in. All I need to do now is start crafting my own style."

"Good, good." Roth said, patting the eleven year old kit on the shoulder. "For ye, I'd recommend Ataru and Jar'kai."

"Just like I did." Roman said as he stood in-between them. "Though I also recommended Soresu."

"Sounds good." Roth said. Stepping away, he gestured for the Freedom Fighters to follow him inside. "C'mon inside. Wouldn't want ye to catch a cold now, would we?"

* * *

 _ **Inside the Prison, Makeshift War-Room…**_

Roman and the Freedom Fighters soon entered what appeared to be a makeshift war room, with a table in the middle with a map of the prison and its surrounding area. He saw Roth already there, beckoning them all over. Walking over, the first question Roman asked was: "So, what are we dealing with?"

"So far, just yer average foot soldiers. I've a funny feeling the enemy are saving their best till last." Roth replied.

Roman nodded, unsurprised by the response. If he were attacking this prison, he'd send in the cannon fodder first in order to soften up the guards, and then send in his best troops to obliterate them. Next, he inquired: "What's their strength?"

"So far, we can't tell. We've only had a couple of attacks." Roth answered.

Roman thought about it for a few seconds before replying: "Then I suggest we do some recon before the next attack comes. Where'd the attackers come from?"

Roth pointed to a part of the map near the top-right corner of the map, saying: "We suspect that the enemy is based at the Artika Egg-Army Headquarters."

At this, Rotor noticeably stiffened.

Roman saw this and frowned. The leader of the Artika Egg-Army was Rotor's father, Tundra the Walrus. Roman had never actually met the man, but had expressed a desire to for quite some time, so he could punch Tundra in the face personally. Returning his thoughts to the problem at hand, he said: "Then that's where we head. Tonight."

"Are you sure?" Sally asked, concerned. "According to Nicole, recent weather reports indicate that a major blizzard is set to hit this region tonight."

"Perfect." Roman said. "That way, I'll be a ghost in the camp. I can be in and out."

Sally face-palmed. "Of course. I forgot you were an expert at recon back during the Clone Wars."

"I thought so." Roman said.

"It's settled then." Roth said. "Roman will lead a few of ye into the Artika Egg-Army base and discover their strength. Till then, you're free to have a look about."

Roman smiled as he heard this, saying: "Since you said that, mind taking me to visit a certain _feline_ in this fine establishment?"

Roth smirked. "I was wondering if you'd even ask me that."

* * *

 _ **Cell 627, not too long later…**_

The cell stank of stale urine and sweat, held within by the triple-glazed windows of the cell and the metre-thick durasteel door. Adding to the sheer discomfort was palpable heat. The only comforts were a fan and the bed, as well as a chair and a selection of books that looked straight out of a charity shop.

In the chair sat a male ash-grey-furred cat in his very late forties, wearing a common prisoner's attire. Were he not in his current state, he would look very handsome. But that was no longer the case, as he now lacked a right eye, with a ragged slash scar through the socket in its place. Furthermore, he also was missing his right arm, with nothing but a stump instead. Both injuries had been dealt to him via a lightsaber, but by two different individuals.

The sound of someone banging on the door drew the cat's attention, and he snarled: "Yes?"

"Freddie, it's me." Came a voice the cat had come to know well over the past six months: Cain Roth, mentor to the person that had maimed him.

"Ah, time for lunch already?" The cat said, his snarl still there.

"That; and you have a visitor." Roth said.

"A visitor?" The cat asked. Then, came a voice that he had not heard for six months:

"Afternoon, Frederick."

Frederick shot out of his chair with a venomous growl of: "You."

The door opened, and there stood the person that had maimed him, holding the tray containing Frederick's lunch: Roman the Fox.

"Me." Roman said, smirking.

Frederick made to attack, but remembered his injuries and merely glared. "Come to gloat at my misfortune, hmm?" He snarled.

"Partially. But I also came to give you your lunch." Roman said as he stepped further into the room.

Frederick's fist clenched at the smugness of Roman's tone, but he held his ground. Looking behind Roman, Frederick asked: "Where's my daughter? I'd have thought you'd have her with you in order to rub this further into my face."

"She's away helping G.U.N." Roman answered. "It's just you and me right now." At this, he walked over to the bed and set the tray there. Turning to face Frederick, Roman folded his arms. "When I watched you get dragged into that transport, I was hoping I'd never have to see your ass again."

"Yet here you stand. So tell me, why are you here?" Frederick asked. "Oh, don't tell me; the prison's under attack."

"Yes." Roman said. "And that's why I'm here. To help repel the attack. I just felt like stopping by and saying hello. That's all there is to it." Turning to leave, Roman said: "Enjoy your meal, Frederick."

"I will. As I continue to plan my vengeance upon you and Ashley after I escape this wretched prison."

" _If_ you escape the prison." Roman replied. "This place isn't maximum security for nothing." At this, he left the cell, shutting the door behind him. Turning to Roth, Roman said: "Let's go. I don't want to be here any longer than I need to."

* * *

 **Just decided to throw a little Frederick scene in there to spice things up. Also, I threw a little Call of Duty Modern Warfare reference into the chapter. See if you can find the reference, then let me know in your reviews.**

 **Other than that, please leave your reviews, no flames please, and May the Force be with you. Always.**

 **T-Rock14**


	5. Chapter 5: Reconnaissance

**Chapter 5: Reconnaisance**

 _ **Outside the Artika Egg Army Base, 20:00 pm**_

Roman twisted his neck slightly in order to loosen the joint up. He knew that tonight would be tough. That alone was obvious. He'd spent the past few hours preparing for the mission, all while selecting who would join him on the mission. His infiltration team consisted of Tails and Sally, both because they were both well versed in the nuances of stealth, Sally especially.

Tails, who was flanking Roman on his right, adjusted the strap holding his sniper rifle to his back once again, looking over at Roman. Like Roman, he was wearing his own winter combat gear, which was effectively the same as Roman's: a black hooded leather jacket with fur lining the hood, several layers of insulating clothing under the jacket, and black winter combat trousers, gloves and boots. His dual lightsabers hung on his hips.

Roman looked to Tails, and patted his friend and padawan learner on the shoulder. "Everything's gonna be alright, Tails."

Tails nodded, bumping knuckles with his close friend.

Roman smiled and turned to Sally, who was sitting on a nearby boulder, looking rather pensive.

The newlywed princess was wearing effectively the same as Roman, but with a hooded navy blue leather jacket. Looking up, she locked eyes with Roman, putting on a smile. Getting up, she walked over and looked towards the base. "So how are we getting in?" She asked.

Roman shrugged as he got out a pair of electro-binoculars and looked into them, surveying the base. As with most Egg-Army bases, the main complex was a large dome, that contained their command centre, armoury, and dorms. Branching out from the base were the vehicular depot, communications centre, and other places. But that was not what Roman was looking at. What he was looking at was the surrounding area, which was laden with signs of Imperial camps. Zooming in, he could see dozens of Imperial Stormtroopers. Doing a quick calculation, he deduced that the Egg-Army had an entire Imperial battle group fighting by their side. Roman lowered his binoculars and sighed. A battle group was eight thousand, one hundred and ninety-two crack Imperial Stormtroopers. Or Snowtroopers, considering the current weather conditions. Looking through the binoculars again, Roman spotted what had to be several walkers. Big ones. "That's weird." Roman remarked. "Haven't seen those types of walkers before."

"What walkers?" Sally asked as she walked up next to him.

Roman handed her the binoculars and asked: "Why not see for yourself?"

Sally took the binoculars from Roman and looked where Roman was pointing, her eyes widening in shock.

The walkers in question were massive, looking like they towered over the base and especially the troopers. They had long gangly legs that connected to the main part of the walker, which looked heavily armoured.

Sally lowered the binoculars and turned to Roman, saying: "Whatever they are, they're not good news for the prison."

"My thoughts exactly." Roman said. Turning to Sally, Roman said: "I suggest we take a closer look. It's not like we'll be seen in this blizzard.

"Unless we're extremely close." Tails said, injecting his opinion into the conversation.

"True. But by then, it'll be too late." Roman said. Turning to Sally, he said: "What do you think?"

"It's risky." Sally said. "But I guess we could give it a shot."

"Cool, let's move." Roman said. And thus, they started moving down from the hill they were currently standing upon.

* * *

 _ **Inside the Base, at the same time…**_

The doors slid open as Egg-Boss Tundra the Walrus stepped into his command centre. And what he saw, he did not like. Imperial technicians everywhere, making 'improvements'. On top of this, there were Imperial troops mingling with his men. Tundra scowled at this. He hated anything new, or anything different to what he had before. Everything had worked fine before the Empire had shown up, but now they were treating everything as 'antiquated and inefficient' to their 'standards'.

He was driven from thought when another voice drew his attention:

"Ah, Egg-Boss Tundra. I've been looking for you."

Tundra turned to see an Imperial Officer standing almost directly behind him.

As with most Imperial officers, this officer was wearing a neat tan uniform, apart from the hat that covered most officer's heads. As well as this, he was wearing black gloves and black boots. The plaque on his uniform, which was eight squares long, with the four on top coloured red, and the four underneath that were coloured blue. On either side of said plaque was a code cylinder, one on each side. This showed the officer's rank, which was colonel. The officer himself looked to be in his mid-to-late thirties, with dark blonde hair and harsh green eyes.

Tundra scowled at him. "What is it, Colonel Okada?"

"I had initially meant to come and warn you of the work being done here, so that you would not be upset when you first entered here. I am aware of your dislike of anything new or different." Colonel Stannis Okada replied.

Tundra turned away from the colonel before turning back around and grabbing the officer by the throat, lifting Okada high above his head. "So you do. So if you were wise, I would abandon these 'improvements' before I break your fucking neck!"

Okada made to say more, but could not, as he was currently fighting for breath.

Tundra let him go, allowing him to breathe. "What were you going to say?"

"I was going to say, that contrary to what you may think, your equipment does need improvement." Okada protested. "As well, I would watch what you do. You might end up making a mistake. And we in the Empire are not tolerant of mistakes."

Tundra glared at Okada, replying: "Then I should also suggest you not make any more changes to my equipment after this one. Otherwise, you would be making a mistake _I_ do not tolerate."

Okada made to reply, but then, the doors leading into the control room opened.

The moment they did, everyone turned around and froze.

* * *

 **Well, that could have escalated rapidly. The question is, who is the person who has just entered the room? Read the next chapter, and all shall be revealed.**

 **Aside from that, please leave your reviews, no flames, and May the Force be with you. Always.**

 **T-Rock14**


	6. Chapter 6: The Inquisitor

**Chapter 6: The Inquisitor**

Everyone but Tundra looked concerned.

The newcomer was dressed wholly in black and grey armour, with the shoulder pads each branded with the Imperial insignia. Around his waist was a black partial tunic, one that allowed for more free movement. Black trousers covered his legs, and black armoured boots covered his shins and feet. He stood about six foot two, and was well built, but not too stocky, a result of strenuous combat training over years. No-one could see the newcomer's face, for it was hidden by a mask that covered the entire head and face, save for a red visor stretching across the area where the eyes would be. Hanging from the newcomer's belt was a cylindrical object that just had to be a lightsaber.

Colonel Okada saluted. "Inquisitor. We… We were not expecting you for another few hours."

"I arrived early, Colonel." The Inquisitor said, his voice muffled by the mask he wore as he faced the colonel. "Did you not get my transmission?"

"N-No, sir." Okada said nervously.

"Hmph. I can see why." The Inquisitor said blankly as he stepped forward. "No wonder I was not greeted by you personally. The communications terminal is currently being given an overhaul."

"Yes, Inquisitor." Okada said. "The terminal was… antiquated. Inefficient."

"I see." The Inquisitor said as he turned, noticing Tundra. "Ah. You must be Egg-Boss Tundra. I am the Grand Inquisitor. You must know why I'm here."

"Yeah. To kill this 'Jedi' that supposedly commands the men guarding Artika Prison." Tundra said, without any sense of politeness. "And then you'll hopefully leave this planet, and us, alone."

At this, Colonel Okada looked at him. "Are you out of your mind? Have you any idea who-"

"No need, Colonel." The Inquisitor said, raising a hand to silence Okada. "Tundra's concerns are well founded. I too, would be skeptical of new acquaintances. As Emperor Palpatine once said: 'A good deal of suspicion is a good basis for working together'." Turning to Okada, he said: "That will be all, Colonel."

"Yes sir." Okada said, saluting as he left.

The Inquisitor once more turned to Tundra, and moved closer, wrapping his arm amicably around Tundra's shoulder. "Let us walk, Tundra. And try to reach an understanding."

Reluctantly, Tundra complied. As long as it meant they left after the deaths of the Jedi, he was fine with things.

* * *

 _ **With Roman, Sally, and Tails…**_

Silence enveloped the trio as they traversed the perimeter of the camp, slowly making their way towards the walkers they had seen on the binoculars.

"How long until we're there?" Tails whispered gently to Roman.

"I don't know. A good half hour is my prediction." Roman replied as he continued trudging along in the snow.

"Enchanting." Tails said sarcastically.

Roman smirked at that. It was becoming clear that Tails was showing a lot of teenage traits lately, which came as no surprise, since he would be thirteen next September.

Sally regarded this with a thought of: _Great._ She remembered what Roman was like as a teenager, and Tails looked like he'd be going through the same transition, with a few differences. He'd be more sarcastic for one, not to mention growing more rebellious and impulsive. _Let's just hope he doesn't turn out like Sonic was when he was Tails' age,_ she thought. The idea made her shudder.

Roman sensed Sally's thoughts and stifled a smirk. Tails with Sonic's tendencies as a preteen could turn out interesting to say the least.

It wasn't long before suddenly, Roman hissed: "Stack up!"

At this, all three attached themselves to the nearest wall, just as an entire squad of Snowtroopers made their presence known.

"Hey, you hear about that guy that just took over from Colonel Okada?" Said one.

"Sure did. Even spotted the dude too. Gives me the creeps just looking at him." Said another.

"Stow it, men. We're out here for a reason." Said their CO, a sergeant with battered armour.

"Yes Sergeant." Came the bored groans of the other eight stormtroopers.

Roman watched them walk the other direction, then turned to Sally and Tails, making a series of signs with his hands.

Both nodded, knowing what he intended.

Roman smiled before he motioned to Tails, who followed him, while Sally moved out from the cover of the wall, and made to flank the troopers. Within seconds, the three were in striking distance of the Snowtroopers.

Sally looked to Roman, who nodded. Immediately, she activated one of her Ring-blades and downed one of the troopers with it, alerting the others.

"What the kriff?" asked the sergeant, but before any more could be done, all nine troopers lay dead.

Roman sheathed his knife, then said: "We'd better keep moving."

"What about the bodies?" Tails asked. "Won't they be discovered if anyone comes out looking for them?"

"Tails, the snow will be camouflage enough for them." Roman said, patting his friend and Jedi apprentice on the shoulder. "Now, let's keep moving." At this, the trio continued on their mission of reconnaissance.

* * *

 _ **Inside the base…**_

The Inquisitor, having recently just finished his one-to-one conversation with Tundra, which had ended rather pleasantly, stood in the now refurbished command center. And what _he_ saw, he liked. The room was flocked with a mixture of Imperial officers and Egg-Army troops, each working together. Underneath his mask, the Inquisitor smiled. He liked it when people joined together to achieve a common goal. He recalled a time when he had once done it to reclaim what was his. But he had left, in disgust at seeing others rise above him in popularity, others being seen as heroes, when he should have been the champion. It had been his right. But since then, he had gotten over it. He served a fresh purpose now. And that purpose was eliminating any remaining Jedi, a purpose he relished, since it gave him a particular feeling of vindication for their having deemed him too old to be trained when the Jedi had discovered his affinity with the Force.

Suddenly, he grimaced, feeling a presence he had not felt since- He pushed the memory from mind. He could not afford to let his past dictate his actions. He was driven from thought as Colonel Okada's voice came to his ears:

"Inquisitor? Are you well?"

The Inquisitor held up a hand, saying: "Yes, I am quite well, Colonel. But, I sense that we have unwanted guests on the base."

" _What?!"_ Colonel Okada spluttered. Then, returning to a professional stance, he said: "I shall notify everyone at once."

"That won't be necessary. I shall deal with these intruders personally." The Inquisitor said as he turned and headed out of the door, leaving a bewildered Colonel Okada there.

* * *

 _ **Back with Roman, Sally and Tails, half an hour later…**_

"By the Force…" Roman remarked as he stepped up to see the walkers in question. They made him look like an ant in comparison. But now he could see them better, he got a better sense of how big they were. Easily twenty-two point five metres tall, the walker looked like it could easily obliterate Artika Prison, if they were intended for that particularly unpleasant purpose. As for armaments, they had what appeared to be two heavy laser cannons underneath the cockpit, and on the sides of the cockpit, there were medium blasters, one to either side of the cockpit. He was almost right next to it, where he stopped, looking at it with an impressed look.

Sally, meanwhile, was looking over the walker with worried eyes, imagining the damage the walkers could do if ever used to assault Mobotropolis. She fought the images from her head of the carnage that could arise.

Tails was looking up at the walker with an amazed air, his love for technology experiencing a major height at the moment, while wondering whether he could possibly reverse-engineer the technology of the walker, should he and the Freedom Fighters capture one.

Roman turned to face Sally and walked up, saying: "As much as I hate the Empire, can't help but be impressed with their advances in technology."

Sally nodded. "I guess."

Tails made to say something, but a voice nearby interrupted him:

"Impressive, aren't they?"

All three turned to face the person who had spoken. The person in question stood about six-foot two, about the same height as Roman, and looked to be well built. For clothing, the individual wore black and grey armour, with the shoulder pads each branded with the Imperial insignia. Around his waist was a black partial tunic, one that allowed for more free movement. Black trousers covered his legs, and black armoured boots covered his shins and feet. Around his waist was a black tunic that partially covered his legs. His face and head were hidden behind a black and grey helmet with a single red strip visor, a helmet that closely resembled the helmets of old Mobian warriors of the past, back when the majority of the galaxy used swords and other weapons of the like for combat.

At least, that's how Sally saw things.

Roman, on the other hand, was more focused on what the newcomer was holding in his hand: An ignited red lightsaber. Drawing and igniting his own lightsaber, Roman demanded: "Who the fuck are you?"

The newcomer moved closer, spinning his lightsaber into a combat-ready stance. "You can call me The Inquisitor." He replied with a smile. "Welcome."

Roman turned to Sally and Tails, saying: "Find a way out of here. And be quick. I'll hold this 'Inquisitor' off."

"Are you sure you don't need a hand?" Tails asked.

"Tails, I've fought guys like this before. I'll be fine." Roman said, failing to notice that The Inquisitor was about to close in.

Sally however, had. "Roman! Watch out!"

Roman whipped around just in time to block the oncoming blow from the Inquisitor, their blades crossing with an audible crackle. Turning back to Sally and Tails, Roman shouted: "Go! Now!"

Sally reluctantly replied, taking Tails by the arm and dragging him away.

Roman watched them go before pushing the Inquisitor away, spinning his lightsaber into a ready stance.

The Inquisitor did the same before launching a probing attack, using standard jabs and basic Makashi style attacks to test Roman's defences.

Roman blocked all of the attacks, realising what the Inquisitor was doing: Probing his defences in order to find a weakness. And from there, the Inquisitor would likely try to strike him down. Promptly, Roman parried the next manoeuvre, before using the momentum to launch a devastating counterattack, surprising the Inquisitor with his ferocity.

Fortunately, the Inquisitor was able to parry all of the attacks, countering with a standard Force Push that threw Roman back a matter of metres. Brushing himself off, The Inquisitor remarked: "Impressive. Clearly a Form Five specialist. Am I correct?"

"Maybe. Depends on how the fuck you know." Roman spat.

"The archives at the Temple are quite complete." The Inquisitor replied as he stepped closer. "And they clearly state you as such, Roman the Fox."

Roman gritted his teeth. This Inquisitor clearly knew his name. "Well then, I'll have to make this quick." Roman said.

"I'm afraid that with me, that is easier said than done." The Inquisitor replied as he attacked again.

* * *

 _ **With Sally and Tails…**_

"And here I was thinking we'd have a welcoming committee." Tails remarked as he and Sally entered the depot.

"Don't get your hopes up, Tails. We could be knee deep in Imperial troops quicker than you can say oops." Sally said as she looked about for a viable means of transportation.

"Oops." Tails said with a smirk.

"Not that quick, though." Sally said, cracking a smile. _Maybe Tails as a teenager won't be so bad,_ she thought. Looking around further, she sighted a perfect way of getting out of here: "Perfect: A snowspeeder."

Tails walked up and asked: "Think you can pilot it?"

"Think you can man the guns?" Sally replied playfully as she hopped onto the speeder, starting its activation. Before anything concrete could happen, several blaster bolts thudded into the speeder.

Tails whirled around to see a squad of Snowtroopers taking cover among the various vehicles. Rolling his eyes, Tails activated his lightsabers, using the Djem-So that Roman had taught him to block the bolts and redirect them towards the shooters.

The Snowtroopers took cover as their blaster bolts came back at them, with one of them, clearly the sergeant in command of the squad, ordering them to flank Tails.

Tails saw them do so, and ran to meet them, surprising them with his perception and promptly cutting them to pieces. This left the other seven, with the sergeant now on his comlink, likely calling in reinforcements. Reaching out with the Force, Tails let out a Force Push that sent the Snowtroopers flying. He soon heard Sally's voice ring out:

"C'mon! Let's grab Roman and get the hell out of here!"

Tails nodded and ran to the snowspeeder, switching off his lightsabers as he did and leaping into one of the gunner seats. Soon, the speeder was operational, and the duo zipped out, and headed back to the walker depot.

* * *

 _ **With Roman and the Inquisitor…**_

Roman ducked an overhead slash from the Inquisitor and countered by slashing at the Inquisitor's right flank, hoping that he would be able to finally strike a blow on the Inquisitor.

The Inquisitor backward rolled out of the way, rendering Roman's attack ineffective.

Roman cursed under his breath in no uncertain terms. He and the Inquisitor had been nothing but evenly matched ever since the duel began. It was growing frustrating.

The Inquisitor took the opportunity to gloat: "Looks like we're at an impasse. Not that that surprises me, seeing how you are a high level Jedi Knight."

"The fact that I was the youngest Jedi Knight in my generation tends to speak for itself." Roman shot back.

"A title _I_ would have held, had I not been deemed too old to be trained by the Jedi and accepted into the Order." The Inquisitor replied. "I always envied you for that. Old friend."

This caused Roman's eyes to narrow, as he asked: "What the hell? Do I know you?"

"You once did." The Inquisitor replied. "But I shouldn't care now. Especially now you're going to die!" At this, he charged Roman, lightsaber raised high above his head.

Roman spun his lightsaber and met the Inquisitor head on, their blades crackling with energy as they met again and again, blue against red. But unlike their previous exchanges, this ended with a saberlock, both adversaries pushing against the other. Whoever won could potentially control the fight from then on. The only problem was, it seemed that both men were on par not only with lightsaber skills, but with pure brute strength as well.

"Yet again, we are at an impasse." The Inquisitor said.

Roman's voice picked up something in the Inquisitor's voice. Although he could not pinpoint it, he knew that there was something familiar about the voice. Once again, he asked: "Who are you?"

"A question that you shall carry to your grave, Roman." The Inquisitor replied darkly as he finally broke the saber lock, through some sheer force of will. He would have attacked, had an invisible force thrown him back.

Roman turned to find Sally and Tails piloting an Imperial snowspeeder, Tails with his hand thrust outward.

"Get in!" Sally shouted.

Roman complied, running over and jumped on board, the speeder soon making its way across the snow, and back to Artika Prison.

The Inquisitor came to his feet and dusted himself off, smiling to himself. "Fascinating." He remarked. "It seems Roman has an apprentice of his own." Retrieving his lightsaber, he attached it to his belt before heading back inside, thoughts coursing through his dark and twisted mind.

* * *

 **Who guessed it would be an Inquisitor? For those who expected Darth Vader, don't worry. He will be in a later fic. But the question is, who is the Inquisitor? And what connection does he have to Roman? Read on, and you _may_ find out.**

 **Anyway, please leave your reviews, but no flames permitted, and May the Force be with you. Always.**

 **T-Rock14**


	7. Chapter 7: Grim News

**Chapter 7: Grim News**

 _ **Artika Prison War Room, 23:30 pm**_

The moment Roman, Sally and Tails entered the room, they found Roth and the others waiting.

"So, how did it go?" Roth asked.

"It went well." Roman replied. "We discovered the full strength of the enemy, as well as discovering what they're capable of."

"And?" Roth demanded.

"The news isn't good." Roman said as he removed his outer clothes. "They've got a full brigade out there; a little over eight thousand troops."

Roth scowled. "Not what I expected for us. The Empire aren't taking any chances."

"No." Sally said as she did the same as Roman. "They're not. We spotted a trio of walkers we hadn't seen before and decided to take a closer look."

"Walkers?" Sonic asked as he walked up to his wife.

"Like the AT-TEs that the clones used." Roman said. "But a lot bigger. A hell of a lot bigger."

"Zat doesn't sound good." Antoine remarked.

"It isn't. These things were like, well over twenty metres tall. Looked like they could squash anyone our size into a pulpy mess." Roman replied.

"Charmin'." Bunnie said sarcastically.

Roth's eyes narrowed. "Sounds like they'll be a problem. Any armaments?"

"Two laser cannons and two medium cannons." Roman said. "On top of that, they look pretty well armoured. I couldn't get any schematics of them, but I'm sure they'll be a problem."

"Yeah, no shit." Amy said as she took a seat nearby.

Roman shot Amy a look warning her to be quiet, before turning to Roth again. "Like I said, we're gonna need those reinforcements soon. Otherwise, we don't stand a chance."

"Doesn't seem like it'll be a problem, Mr Roman." Cream said as she walked up. "Miss Ashley called to say that she and the G.U.N reinforcements are on their way. ETA, sometime tomorrow."

Roman smiled and ruffled Cream's head fur. "Great job, Cream."

"Thank you." Cream said.

Roman turned away from Cream and looked at Roth, his eyes saying: "I need to talk to you. Alone."

Roth nodded and said: "Everyone but me and Roman, out. Go and do something else."

At this, everyone left the room.

Roth looked at Roman with a look. "What's this all about, Roman?"

"There was something else. Something I didn't want to mention to the others. Sally and Tails know this too."

"What?" Roth asked, concerned.

"I don't know what it was. All I know is that he called himself The Inquisitor." Roman answered.

"The Inquisitor?" Roth inquired.

"Yeah. He was wearing some sort of Imperial Armour I haven't seen before, including a mask that seemed fashioned from an old Mobian warrior's helmet, so I couldn't see his face. But that wasn't what concerned me." Roman said.

"Then what was it?" Roth asked.

"What concerned me was that he had a lightsaber. And he could use the Force." Roman replied.

Roth was taken aback by this information. He hadn't been expecting that. "H-How is that possible?" He asked.

"Beats me. Only possible explanation is that the Sith managed to take a Force Sensitive and turn them to the Dark Side." Roman mused. "Either that or they managed to coerce a Padawan to the Dark Side."

"Either one is viable." Roth said. "I'm guessing this 'Inquisitor' chappie is sent to wherever there's a Jedi to kill them."

"I'm thinking along the same lines." Roman added. "Whoever this 'Inquisitor guy is, he's not a nice customer. When I fought him, we were effectively evenly matched. We were pretty much at an impasse for most of the fight."

"Did you get a feel for his style?" Roth asked.

"I got a lot of Makashi for one, with some hints of Niman and Djem-So." Roman said. "And he's darn good with his lightsaber. I can say that much. Otherwise, I would've smoked him."

"Aye. How about his Force Abilities?" Roth inquired.

"Limited. He used a lot of telekinetic moves to gain the advantage for a brief bit of time during the fight, mostly Force Push or Pull." Roman said.

"Hmm. At least that's an advantage, though we shouldn't rule out him having more Force powers." Roth cautioned.

"I know. But this is my experience, so yeah." Roman said.

Roth scowled. "This guy sounds like trouble. I'd advise not engaging him until we can get a better sense of his strengths and weaknesses. Till then, we shouldn't engage him. Be sure to pass the message on to Tails."

"Will do." Roman said.

"Anything else?"

"Yeah." Roman replied. "I think it's someone I used to know."

"What do you mean?" Roth asked.

"During the last few minutes of the fight, he called me 'old friend'." Roman replied.

Roth blinked like he'd been slapped. That hadn't been something he expected either. Still shocked, he asked: "Did you notice anything familiar about his style of fighting, or anything like that?"

"No. And if there was anything I should have noticed as familiar, I didn't see it." Roman replied.

Roth scowled as he turned around, stroking his neatly trimmed beard. "That's a comforting thought." He said sarcastically.

"It wasn't Seth; I know that much." Roman said.

"How'd you know?" Roth asked.

"Roth, Seth's one of my best friends. I know full well how he fights: He's more a practitioner of Ataru and Soresu, along with Jar'kai. The Inquisitor was using a mixture of Makashi, Niman, and Djem-So."

"True." Roth said. He sighed as he walked up to Seth and said: "You'd better get to bed, lad. Maybe our thoughts will be clearer then."

"Yeah. Sounds like a good idea." Roman said as he turned to leave. "Good night, Roth."

"G'night." Roth said as Roman left, leaving him all alone in the dimly lit room.

* * *

 **Still wondering who the Inquisitor is? Well sorry, I ain't telling you! Find out by reading on. His identity will be revealed at the end, I swear.**

 **Other than that, please leave your reviews (NO FLAMES!), and May the Force be with you. Always.**

 **T-Rock14**


	8. Chapter 8: The Inquisitor's Request

**Chapter 8: The Inquisitor's Request**

 _ **Artika Egg-Army Base Command Centre, shortly after Roman, Sally & Tails' escape…**_

The doors swept open as the Inquisitor stormed into the room, startling many.

Colonel Okada walked up to the Inquisitor and asked: "Did you deal with them, sir?"

The Inquisitor whirled on Okada, who backed off instantly. "Ask me a foolish question again, and I shall kill you. Am I clear?"

Okada looked flustered. "I was merely asking-"

" _ **Am. I. CLEAR?"**_ The Inquisitor snarled.

The colonel nodded nervously. "Y-Yes sir."

"Excellent." The Inquisitor said as he dismissed the colonel with a single wave of the hand. "Now leave me."

"Yes sir." Okada said as he left the room.

The Inquisitor lingered there awhile until another voice, albeit more gruff, came to his ears:

"So, you're here a little longer, hmm?"

The Inquisitor turned to see Egg-Boss Tundra standing there, minus the hood. Now, his face was revealed, scars running all over it. "I have no time for idle conversation, Tundra."

"Then what are you doing standing around, if you have no time?" Tundra asked.

The Inquisitor folded his arms and scowled. "I am mentally preparing myself."

"For what?" Tundra asked.

"Something that is none of your business, to be frank." The Inquisitor answered rudely.

"Just asking." Tundra said.

"Well, ask me no more questions, and I shall make no efforts to ask you any." The Inquisitor said blankly to Tundra. "Now, remove yourself from sight and leave me be. I have someone I wish to speak to."

Reluctantly, Tundra left, leaving the Inquisitor alone in the room.

The Inquisitor let out a breath to ease himself before walking up to the newly installed holoprojector, and pressing the necessary buttons to set it on the correct frequency. After doing this, he stepped away from the holoprojector, and after a few seconds, he knelt, head bowed, just as a figure appeared on the projector.

The figure was tall for a human being, which was unsurprising, as the individual standing in The Inquisitor's vision was said to be more machine than man. Standing over two metres tall, the figure was clad entirely on black, save for a panel on the chest plate with numerous buttons that glowed red and green, among other colours. A long black cape billowed from the figure's broad shoulders. But the most intimidating factor was the face. It, along with the head, was covered with an intimidating helmet, black as the rest of the armour, and black as night itself. Over where the mouth would be was instead a medium sized equilateral triangle shaped vent. The eyes were bulbous, almost as if they were eyes poking out of a skull. The back of the helmet was similar to The Inquisitor's, but looked more elegant, but intimidating. Adding to the intimidation was the sound of the figure's heavy breathing, which spread fear and trepidation wherever it was heard.

The Inquisitor looked up to the figure, and spoke their name, clear as day: "Lord Vader."

* * *

Darth Vader, Dark Lord of the Sith and enforcer of the Galactic Empire, looked down at the Inquisitor with what might have been indifference. "Grand Inquisitor. I assume you have contacted me to inform me that your mission is complete, and that you are making preparations to return?" Vader asked.

"As a matter of fact, no." The Inquisitor replied, bracing himself.

Vader's response was curt. "I see. Then why have you contacted me, if not for that reason?"

"It appears my mission may be more complex than we had at first anticipated, my lord." The Inquisitor declared.

"Explain." Vader replied, or rather, commanded.

"It would appear that Roman the Fox has taken an apprentice of his own. One of his kind." The Inquisitor answered.

Vader seemed neither surprised, nor angry at The Inquisitor's response, his breathing being the only noise in the room.

It occurred then to the Inquisitor that he was never quite sure of Vader's mood.

Darth Vader's next reply came unexpectedly. "Is he known to you?"

The Inquisitor was taken aback. He had not seen the kit's face. So he responded: "I do not know. They escaped before I could see the apprentice's face."

"What do you mean, they escaped?!" Vader demanded.

"I was battling Roman outside the base, and we had reached a stalemate." The Inquisitor replied. "We were about to cross blades again when the apprentice took me by surprise by Force Pushing me away. Roman quickly joined him and their accomplice and escaped." The Inquisitor said this with a hint of fear. He knew full well what happened when Vader got angry.

"Did you not have assistance with you?" Vader asked.

"No. I was confident I could defeat Roman on my own. I was unaware of the apprentice's identity as such until he Force Pushed me." The Inquisitor reported.

Vader folded his arms, clearly unimpressed. "It appears that you are having trouble on Mobius."

"You could say that, my lord." The Inquisitor replied.

"I take your tone as a sign that you need assistance." Vader said.

Underneath his helmet, the Inquisitor felt perspiration begin to slip down his face. He knew that with Vader, that had two meanings: One, it could mean he was genuinely asking if he wanted assistance, or, it could mean Vader was asking if he should send someone he deemed 'more capable'. The Inquisitor never knew with Vader. So, he said something he rarely said: "Yes. I do need assistance."

For a while, the room was silent, the only thing keeping it from total silence being the steady breathing emanating from Vader.

Finally, Vader spoke. "And as a reward for your seamless record, you shall have the assistance you seek."

Relief washed over the Inquisitor as he replied: "You are sure?"

"You doubt my words?" Vader said threateningly.

"No, I don't. I was merely surprised by your generous offer, my lord." The Inquisitor replied.

"Good. I shall dispatch two more Inquisitors to your location. Coupled with a small detachment of Shadow Guards." Vader said. "That is all you will get, Inquisitor, so do not come to me with a request for more, as you will get nothing. Am I understood?"

"Yes Lord Vader. I will not fail you." The Inquisitor replied.

"You had best not." Vader replied. "The assistance will arrive in several days. Be ready for them when that happens." At this, Vader's figure dissipated and conversation was ended.

The Inquisitor stood up from his kneeling position, and breathed a sigh of relief. For a fleeting moment, he removed his helmet, and wiped a bushy eyebrow, before placing his helm back on his head. Following this, he turned and walked out in search of Tundra and Colonel Okada. They had some planning to do.

* * *

 **Didn't expect that, did you? I did say Darth Vader was going to appear in the story, but not as a main villain. At least, not until much later in the series.**

 **Anyway, please leave your reviews (NO FLAMES!), and May the Force be with You. Always.**

 **T-Rock 14**


	9. Chapter 9: Morning Attack

**Chapter 9: Morning Attack**

 _ **The next morning, 23**_ _ **rd**_ _ **June 3239, 10:30 pm**_

"Morning everyone." Roman said drearily as he entered what was usually the breakfast hall. To say he had slept well would be a lie. His sleep the previous night had been racked with nightmares of The Inquisitor massacring all of his friends, especially Tails.

Sally noticed his perturbed expression and asked: "Everything alright, Roman?" She asked, head tilted to one side.

Roman nodded. "I'm fine Sally. Just a bad dream."

"I hope that's all that it was." Sally said. "You don't look like you slept well, especially with those dark circles around your eyes."

"Oh, you know, maybe I'm part raccoon." Roman said, drawing out a few laughs. That was an old joke Roman loved telling whenever he had the chance.

Sally smiled and said: "Okay." At this, she returned to her breakfast.

Roman soon received his own breakfast, a simple one with bacon, eggs, hash browns, sausages, and other cornerstones of Roman's ideal breakfast. Looking across, he could see Roth discussing something with his men, probably strategy. He was about to get up and go over there when he heard a voice say:

"Morning, Rome."

Roman looked to see Tails sitting next to him, looking curious. "Morning Tails. You alright?"

"Well, I'm certainly better than you. You look like you had a real bad night's sleep." Tails replied.

"He says it's because he's part raccoon." Sally claimed.

Tails looked amused. "You're still using that joke? Last time you used it was seven years ago." Tails said with a chuckle.

"Nineteen isn't that far away from twelve, my friend." Roman said with a smirk.

Tails rolled his eyes. "How are you always this difficult to pin down with words?"

"Learned from one of the best: Seth." Roman replied. He frowned at the thought of his old friend.

Tails saw this and sighed. "I'm sure he's alright, Roman. Wherever he is."

"I hope that's the case, Tails. For my sake." Roman replied as he finished his breakfast. He made to say more when suddenly, the alarm began blaring, suggesting the long-distance scanners had picked up something. Roman didn't need to look up to Roth to know what it meant. He soon heard Roth's voice bark:

"They're back, lads and lassies! Battle Stations!"

* * *

 _ **Not too long later…**_

"This does _not_ look good." Roman said as he looked through his electro-binoculars.

Approaching the prison were numerous Imperial troop transports, about sixteen in number, each likely containing about one squad of eight crack Imperial Stormtroopers. Behind them were four walkers that reminded Roman of the old Republic AT-RTs that were used during the Clone Wars. Except these were slightly taller, and bulkier. Two spindly legs reached up into the main cockpit, which was basically one giant box with guns on the bottom and sides with two square shaped holes for the drivers to see through.

Roman lowered his electro-binoculars and handed them to Roth, who looked through.

"That's a bloody lot more than what we got initially." Roth said.

"Figures. That initial attack was probably meant to test us a little bit." Roman said. "Now they've got a sense of our overall strength, now they're heading in hard and heavy."

Roth kept looking through the electro binoculars before handing them back to Roman. "I just spotted some Egg-Army transports. Looks to me like we're in for a wild start to the day."

"No shit." Roman said. Turning and walking over to the Freedom Fighters, Roman stated: "Okay, so way I see it, we've got tonnes of heat headed our way. From what me and Roth saw, I'd say we're up against a company of Snowtroopers. As well as that, we've got walkers."

Sally's eyes widened "As in the walkers we saw last night?"

"Hell no." Roman replied "These ones are a lot smaller than the ones we saw last night."

"Thank the Goddess." Sally said, breathing a sigh of relief.

"I'll say." Tails said.

Roman patted both on the shoulders before turning to Roth. "So what's the plan?"

"We'll take positions and wait. It'll be a simple siege tactic." Roth said. "Once they get through, we attack and repel them that way. The narrow gap that they've blasted through the outer walls will nullify their numbers. At least until those walkers get here. Then, me, ye and Tails will focus on taking down the walkers." Roth made to say more, but suddenly, explosions came up around them, killing several guards.

"Fuck!" Roth snarled. "They've got artillery! Inside, now! We'll ambush them when they get in."

"Sounds like an idea." Roman replied as they made to head inside.

Only for an artillery blast to hit their sole means of entry inside, collapsing the area.

"Or not." Roman said.

* * *

 _ **With the Imperial transports, outside the prison…**_

Imperial Snowtroopers charged out of the transport from behind, taking up positions on either side of the deployment ramp and covering the transport's other passenger.

The Inquisitor strode out of the transport and rounded the corner to face the prison. Seeing the gap, he smiled beneath his mask. It quickly became a scowl when he heard the voice of a person he now disliked considerably.

"Sir, what do you propose? Do we go through the gap we already blasted, or do we find another entry point?" Colonel Okada asked.

"I find your lack of tactical ingenuity disturbing, Colonel." The Inquisitor replied. Turning to Okada completely, The Inquisitor pointed to one of the cliff faces that was next to the outer wall of the prison, saying: "Notice that cliff face? It's perfect for climbing up. We will use that to climb up and attack them from above. Clear?"

"What of the Egg-Army?" Colonel Okada asked.

"They will take the gap in the wall. That will provide the distraction for us to climb up."

"We came prepared for a head on assault, not a death from above operation!" Colonel Okada protested.

The Inquisitor responded by drawing his lightsaber and pointing it at Okada, asking: "Let me ask you something, Colonel. Would you rather face the enemy in battle, or answer to Lord Vader for obstructing my mission?"

"I-I would face the enemy, Inquisitor." Okada said, visibly shaking at the sight of the Inquisitor's blade being mere inches from his throat.

"That's what I thought." The Inquisitor replied, extinguishing his lightsaber and placing it back on his belt. "Now give the order! We climb!"

"Y-Yes, Inquisitor." Colonel Okada said as he moved to do so.

The Inquisitor watched him leave, before turning his attention completely to the prison. He could sense Roman's presence within, alongside other people he had not sensed, including his-

He thrust the thought aside. He could ill afford to allow memories of his earlier life to direct his decisions. He would deal with any remainders of his past, including Roman, in due time. He then heard Okada's voice call out:

"Inquisitor! We're moving out! Are you joining us?"

The Inquisitor looked to see Okada staring back at him with a quizzical expression. The Inquisitor gave a curt nod before following the troops. This was going to be interesting.

* * *

 _ **With Roman and the others…**_

The final round of artillery struck the ground several metres away from where Roman had been standing, showering him, Sally, and Sonic with shrapnel. One piece of shrapnel grazed his head, leaving a small sized cut an inch or so over Roman's left eyebrow. Turning to Sally and Sonic, Roman said: "Won't be long before they pile in."

Both nodded, with Sally gripping her blaster pistol tightly in her hand.

Roman turned to look over at where Tails now took cover alongside Roth, the two friends sharing a quiet nod. Looking around, Roman could feel the tension of the entire group, as they awaited the inevitable fight that was about to come.

Suddenly, Roman heard something reminiscent of something skittering across the floor. Upon realising what it was, Roman shouted: "Take cover!"

But before he could, the earth-shattering report of an explosion rocked the surrounding area, and the flash of the flames appeared before his very eyes as several guards went flying, their screams adding to the din. Roman swore as he looked away from the conflagration, drawing his DL-44 Blaster Pistol as he took cover. Soon, he saw blaster bolts flying over him. Reaching out with the Force, he sensed that their attackers were the Egg-Army. _Where's the Imperials, then?_ He wondered. He decided to wait to ask that question and deal with the threat at hand, poking out of cover and letting loose a couple of shots, the familiar report of his pistol music to his ears, and the sight of one of the Egg-Army goons falling to the floor art before his eyes. Dodging another shot from a second Egg-Army soldier, Roman put several blaster shots through him. Looking over, he saw Tails was doing the same as him, using his blaster pistol, which was a DL-18 given to him by Roman as an eleventh birthday present the year before. Roth meanwhile, was using his lightsaber, using it almost like a shield. The double bladed weapon was swatting away blaster bolts as if they were bugs, with the 'bugs' being deflected back into the ranks of the enemy, who had now started to take cover, returning fire. Roman took confidence in the fact that they were doing well against the enemy, vaulting over the wall he was on and laying down suppressing fire as he called out: "Tails! Come over to me before Roth accidentally skewers you with his lightsaber!"

Tails looked over and nodded, using the chance to sprint over and take cover next to Roman.

"How're you holding up, bud?" Roman asked.

"Pretty good if I do say so myself." Tails replied.

"Hate to break up your conversation, but we're in the middle of a fight!" Sally shouted from behind the two vulpine Jedi.

Tails and Roman looked at each other, shrugged, and began to continue putting up a fight. This was set to be a long day.

* * *

 _ **Nearby, with the Imperial Forces…**_

"Keep moving!" barked Colonel Okada as he and The Inquisitor watched their men climb up.

One nearly lost their grip, but he managed to regain it, and continue climbing.

Another one wasn't so lucky. He slipped on some loose part of the rock and fell, his scream continuing until he reached the bottom, where it ended with an audible splat.

Colonel Okada looked at The Inquisitor with pleading eyes. "Sir, you'll tire the men out with this exertion. Troops should enter the battlefield rested, not weary! They'll be fodder otherwise!"

The Inquisitor looked at Okada with a glare that made the Colonel pull at his collar. "I have no time for the pleas of weak people like you, Colonel. But you raise a point. Until the Jedi and their allies have disposed of the Egg-Army contingent that accompanied us, we will wait. I expect all of your men to have joined us by then."

As if on cue, the commanding officer of the Snowtroopers clambered into view, accompanied by some of the others.

"That's five down." The Inquisitor said blankly. "Now to wait for the rest."

The Imperial troops double timed it after that, their confidence restored at their commander's successful climb, and so did their best to do the same.

"It appears that your expectations will be met, Inquisitor." Colonel Okada said.

"Of course they will be. Unless the troops want to be executed for insubordination." The Inquisitor replied.

With a little time, all the troops were assembled on the top of the cliff face.

"So what's the plan now, Commander?" The commanding Snowtrooper asked The Inquisitor.

"The plan is for you to rest while the Egg-Army become our cannon fodder. Then we will move in and hopefully defeat the enemy." The Inquisitor replied.

"Very well, sir." The CO said as he distributed the orders among his troops.

"Let us hope your strategy works." Colonel Okada said.

"Yes. And you had better think of a reason for me not to kill you if it doesn't." The Inquisitor shot back.

"Right." The Colonel replied nervously.

* * *

 _ **Back with Roman and the others…**_

Roman cursed as a stray blaster bolt grazed the top of his left shoulder. He, his friends, and the Egg-Army had been basically at a stalemate for a few minutes now, exchanging fire over the courtyard that had become their battlefield. The Egg Army had now taken up their own positions, and were currently trying to find a way to penetrate Roman and friends line of defence. Roman briefly popped out of cover and fired several shots, none of which downed anyone. Turning to Tails, Roman snarled: "This can't last any longer! We have to do something!"

"We're open to ideas!" Sally said. She and Sonic had moved up next to Roman and Tails, and were now currently laying down some suppressing fire.

Roman turned to Tails and they reached an understanding. Looking over to Roth, who had also taken cover since the fight began, he called out "Roth! This isn't working! Let's get this over with!"

Roth met Roman's eyes and nodded at their meaning, brandishing his lightsaber.

Roman and Tails holstered their pistols before drawing their lightsabers. the blue blades flared to life before them as they turned to face the now nervous ranks of the Egg-Army. Roman looked at Tails, then at Roth, and they all let out a fearsome war cry as they vaulted over the debris they were taking cover behind and charged the enemy, who now opened fire as one, hoping to catch one of the approaching Jedi with a lucky shot.

But it was not to be, as the trio of Jedi soon closed with the Egg-Army troops.

Roman, as soon as he was close to one, immediately drove his lightsaber up to the hilt into an Egg-Army soldier, an anthropomorphic wolf. Tearing his blade free, Roman swung his lightsaber upwards to deflect an oncoming blaster bolt, and then slashed back down again, cutting down a second Egg-Army soldier. Turning to face a third, Roman cut the soldier's blaster in two before separating the soldier's upper half from his lower half. Rolling under the attempt of a fourth to bludgeon him with the stock of a blaster rifle, Roman stabbed the soldier from behind. Pulling his blade out, Roman reached out with the Force and sent several of the Egg-Army soldiers into the buzzsaw that was Roth's lightsaber with a Force Push. Roman, smiling at this, suddenly grimaced in pain as a blaster bolt caught him in the abdomen, staggering him slightly. Looking up, he saw the soldier who had fired the shot, a young soldier who looked about Roman's age, now quivering at the fate that awaited him.

Or so he thought.

Roman flicked the lad aside with a quick use of the Force and closed with the other members of the Egg-Army, opening the throat of one and leaving another holding in their intestines. Moving on, Roman rapidly cut down several more soldiers, beheading the last one in his general area before looking over to Tails, who was currently in the process of finishing his lot off.

Tails slashed one soldier across the torso while stabbing another before dragging the blade free and cutting down another with an upward slash, opening up their sternum and rendering the body underneath the ribcage visible. Another quick slash after that, and the corpse followed the soldier's severed head to the floor soon after. Sensing another soldier behind him, Tails rolled backwards underneath the soldier before spinning his lightsabers and slashing both across the soldier's back in an X motion.

This final soldier joined the rest of his comrades on the floor of the battlefield, dead.

Everyone started clapping as Roman walked over and bro-hugged Tails. "Awesome job Tails. You were all class."

"T-thanks, Rome." Tails said, blushing a little bashfully. "I did my best."

"Ah, don't sell yourself short, little bro." Sonic said as he walked over and clapped Tails on the shoulder. "Like Rome just said, you were all class."

"He raises a strong point." Sally said as she hugged Tails. "I'm proud of you, Tails. We all are."

"Not as much as I am." Roman said. "Though you could still use some work with your lightsaber. Maybe in terms of defence."

"Like I said a few days ago, maybe I should start on Soresu. That's the best defensive form there is." Tails said.

"And that's exactly what I intend to do once we get out of this." Roman declared. He made to say more when suddenly, a blaster shot rang out, and one of the guards fell dead, his head absolutely obliterated.

Roman turned to see Snowtroopers had rappelled down from one of the rock faces that made up part of the prison courtyard walls, and were already taking up positions. And at their head was the Inquisitor, crimson lightsaber blazing, ready for battle.

With a scowl, Roman and his friends started forward, prepared to engage this foe.

* * *

The Inquisitor smiled broadly from beneath his mask as he started forward. But it was not Roman he sought to battle.

The vulpine Jedi slashed at the Inquisitor with a vicious overhead slash, in hope of beheading the Dark Side acolyte with a single blow.

The Inquisitor ducked the blow and landed a punch that sent Roman staggering back. Steeping forwards, he spun his lightsaber as he engaged Roth. "I've been looking forward to this, Roth!" The Inquisitor declared as he and Roth crossed blades.

"I'm sure ye have lad." Roth replied as he pushed The Inquisitor's blade away and launched a hailstorm of an attack, using his expertise in Jar'Kai to force the Inquisitor onto the back foot.

The Inquisitor fell back under the onslaught, surprised at the force of the attack. It had become clear he had underestimated Roth's ability. But that would soon change. He continued to defend himself, using the time to analyse Roth's style, which was Jar'Kai interwoven with Djem So. With this in mind, he ducked an overhead slash from Roth, and then used a Force Push to take Roth's right knee out from under him, taking the older Force User off balance.

Roth fell back, prepared to receive the Inquisitor's assault, which he did.

The Inquisitor launched his assault much like he did against Roman the night before, with probing Makashi thrusts and jabs, testing the elderly Jedi's defences.

Roth knew what the Inquisitor was doing, but played along, pretending he was oblivious.

Suddenly, the Inquisitor began launching a flat out attack on Roth, pounding relentlessly at Roth's defences with an excessive use of Juyo. He had trained extensively under this style, as he had with the others, and as such, he had began to use it effectively against people like Roth.

Roth parried and blocked the majority, but he knew that when he was facing somebody with expertise in Juyo, particularly someone like the Inquisitor, he was going to need to be extra cautious. Suddenly, he grunted in pain as he felt the blade of the Inquisitor's lightsaber bite into his left shoulder. Falling back, he examined the wound, watching the Inquisitor approach carefully.

The Inquisitor now attacked with renewed confidence, like a shark smelling blood in the water. His attacks were parried at most, but the Inquisitor was determined to break through. And soon, he found a means to do so: He parried an attempt by Roth at a counterattack, and countered with one of his own: By cutting Roth's double-bladed lightsaber completely in two.

Roth looked at his now destroyed weapon, throwing one end aside and spinning the only working blade yet. "We ain't done yet, laddie. I've still got some fight left in me." With this, he attacked, an impressive attack using Djem-So principles that at first surprised the Inquisitor, but only at first. Using a trick Darth Vader had taught him, The Inquisitor ducked an attempt by Roth to decapitate him, kicked Roth's lightsaber from his hand and into the Inquisitor's own, and the Inquisitor made to strike him down. But he failed to account for someone else. Suddenly, The Inquisitor felt the familiar sensation of a kick to his face, surprising him and making him fall back. But who he saw surprised him greatly, for it was not Roman, or his apprentice.

It was Sally, who had two blades of energy sprouting from her wrist rings.

* * *

The Inquisitor stared at Sally for quite some time before laughing. "And how does some pampered little princess like you expect to defeat a servant of the Dark Side?"

This was heard by Roman, who had been distracted by the Snowtroopers surrounding him, who now all lay dead. Looking up though, he saw what everyone else saw, and he looked on with horror, but also a little curiosity.

"I may be no Force User, Inquisitor." Sally replied. "But it doesn't mean I can't defeat you."

The Inquisitor laughed and did the common salute he often did before a lightsaber duel, or any duel for that matter. As soon as he had done this, he attacked, much more aggressively than he had usually done, instantly using Juyo to try and pound Sally into submission.

Sally made no attempt to parry or block any oncoming attacks, merely dodged them with sheer agility alone, using the extensive combat training she had subjected herself to over the years, occasionally off-balancing the Inquisitor with a simple kick or even a punch. She thanked the Goddess she had take the time to tape her hands before putting on her gloves and rings.

The Inquisitor, tiring of this, soon began doing the same, quickly ducking a roundhouse from Sally and countering with a stiff left hook to the face. Spinning his lightsaber, The Inquisitor slashed down at Sally, hoping to end this once and for all.

Sally brought up both ring-blades at once, blocking the blow before it could land, and quickly kicking up with her right leg, catching the Inquisitor off guard and sending the Dark Acolyte staggering forwards. Getting to her feet, she and the Inquisitor once again faced off.

"You've been trained well, princess." The Inquisitor remarked condescendingly.

"Glad of you to notice." Sally replied.

"Yet like all things, this fight must end. Now." The Inquisitor snarled.

"Then let's end it." Sally said, preparing to attack.

The Inquisitor scoffed before making a pincer out of his hand and aimed it at Sally.

Sally didn't realise at first, but once she did, she started choking at the invisible hand constricting her throat, clawing at whatever it was.

The Inquisitor smirked as he added: "I did say right now." He then made a pulling motion, holding his lightsaber out in front of him with an intent to impale Sally.

" _ **NO!"**_ Sonic shouted, instantly launching himself into a spin-dash at the Inquisitor.

The Inquisitor turned, but too late, as Sonic caught him in the face and sent him staggering back.

Sonic then ran over to Sally, who was coughing from the effects of the Inquisitor's use of Force Choke. "Are you alright?"

"I will be." Sally said, smiling at Sonic.

The Inquisitor got to his feet saw all of his enemies assembled at once, so many faces he recognised from the past: Bunnie, Antoine, Rotor, and others. He also noticed Colonel Okada cowering behind cover. Scowling, he looked around for any people who were planning on closing in to battle him. Suddenly, the sound of jet engines drew his attention, the same with Roman and his friends.

Above them was a G.U.N dropship, which was currently allowing G.U.N soldiers to disembark. Quickly, about an entire platoon, thirty strong, stood alongside Roman and the Freedom Fighters. But there were three more people the dropship had yet to cough out.

Those three people soon followed, revealing two that The Inquisitor recognised, but another he did not. The two that he recognised were Shadow the Hedgehog and Rouge the Bat. The other was a female anthropomorphic cat that he had no prior knowledge of. Realising his predicament, The Inquisitor knew he was at a disadvantage. Taking one last dismissive look at Okada, The Inquisitor leaped up onto the rock face he had used for his assault, declaring: "You may have survived this day, Freedom Fighters, but know this: No-one battles the Empire and wins." At this, he disappeared from view, ignoring the cries of Colonel Okada for help.

* * *

Roman watched him leave before he saw Roth walk over.

"He'll be back." Roth said. "With more troops."

"That's certain." Roman replied. "But we'll be ready for him." Turning to where Sally now sat, regaining her breath, Roman said: "Sally Alicia Acorn, you are either very brave, or very stupid for challenging the Inquisitor."

"I could've taken him." Sally said. "Had he not started using the Force to choke me like he did."

"The main thing is that you're alive." Roman said. "I don't think Sonic would like it if he were widowed after only a day and a half of marriage, don't you think?"

Sally chuckled. "I guess so."

Roman smiled and ruffled her hair before he heard a voice he had longed to hear ever since he had come out here:

"Roman!"

Roman turned to see Ashley standing a few metres away, beautiful as ever and wearing her combat/mission gear. Taking a few steps towards her, he saw her do the same. That walk soon became a jog, and then a run, until they were back in each other's arms. Roman hoisted Ashley high into the air and spun around, laughing with joy. Letting her down, Roman asked: "The fuck took you so long?"

"Command kept going back and forth as to whether they should openly resist the Empire." Ashley replied. "In the end, Commander Tower got the order through, and here I am."

Roman smiled before leaning in, sealing his reunion with Ashley in a passionate kiss.

Ashley wrapped her arms around Roman and sighed into the kiss, her heart filled to the brim with the water of joy at reunion with the man she loved. Breaking the kiss, they gazed into one another's eyes, as they often did together. Promptly, they just embraced.

Sally and Sonic watched them from afar, also holding one another. "Now who do they remind you of, Sonic?"

"I'm going to hazard a guess and say us when we were younger." Sonic replied as he kissed his wife. The kiss was interrupted when he heard a voice he had rather not heard:

"Sonic."

Sonic broke the kiss to gaze into the crimson eyes of one of his most prolific rivals: Shadow. Getting to his feet, Sonic said: "What do you want?"

"I just wanted to say congratulations on your wedding." Shadow said, his tone more pleasant then it usually was when around Sonic. "And that I apologise for not being present on the day."

"Forgive me for saying, but why are you being so pleasant now?" Sonic demanded.

Shadow shrugged. "Let's just say I've found someone of my own. And she's helped me be a little more friendly."

Sonic raised an eyebrow. "I'm going to hazard a guess and say that it's Rouge." Sonic said, pointing at the aforementioned bat, who was currently talking to Amy and the others.

"You're right." Shadow replied.

Sonic smiled and patted Shadow on the shoulder. "Then I'm happy for you, bro. I really am."

"Now, I need to speak to Roth. He _is_ in command around here, isn't he?" Shadow asked.

"He is. He's over there, talking to Tails." Sonic said.

Shadow nodded and left the two alone, walking over to Roth and starting up a conversation.

Roman soon joined them, Ashley at his side. "Heck of a morning, eh?" He said to Sally and Sonic.

The two newlyweds nodded. "Yeah. It was a heck of a good morning." Sally said. She made to say more, but was interrupted by the angry shouts of someone:

"Unhand me! I am Colonel Stannis Okada of the Imperial Navy. I demand to see your commanding officer!" Colonel Okada shouted as he was dragged away.

"Yeah, and I don't really give a crap." Said one of the G.U.N soldiers dragging him away.

The two couples watched this and shared a laugh, before Ashley said: "Let's focus on finding a way inside, shall we? The main entrance seems a little… collapsed, shall I say?"

Roman laughed as he replied: "You can say that again." At this, the couples split up, and began to get to work.

* * *

 **Figured it was about time there was some action. I had initially thought that this would be another chapter of just talking. But I decided you guys would be bored, so I decided to get the eponymous siege that lends its name to this fic well and truly underway.**

 **Aside from that, please leave your reviews (NO FLAMES!), and May the Force be with you. Always.**

 **T-Rock14**


	10. Chapter 10: Re-Affirmation

**Chapter 10: Re-Affirmation**

 _ **Artika Egg-Army Base, 15:30 pm**_

The doors flew open as the Inquisitor stormed in, not appearing very happy.

A junior Imperial Officer bravely walked over to make conversation. "Sir, where is-"

Seizing him by the throat, The Inquisitor snarled: "Speak to me again today, and you will die. Am I clear?"

The junior officer nodded. "Y-Yes sir."

The Inquisitor released him and brushed himself off before replying: "Good. Now leave me be. And give the order that I am not to be disturbed for the rest of the day unless something arises that requires my immediate attention. Anything else shall be treated as insubordination, and will be punished accordingly." The Inquisitor said, his voice an almost feral growl. "Am I understood?"

"Y-Yes sir." The junior officer replied, now perspiring.

The Inquisitor continued glaring at the junior officer before storming off, headed towards his personal quarters.

The junior officer tugged at his collar in a way similar to how Colonel Okada often did when he was around. This didn't stop the junior from wondering though: Where was the Colonel? Killed in action? If so, why had The Inquisitor not brought back his body for burial. Then again, the Inquisitor did not follow the normal command chain. The officer was driven from thought when he heard a gruff voice demand:

"What are you doing just standing there?"

Turning, the junior officer spotted Egg-Boss Tundra standing there, looking rather impressed. "N-Nothing. Just spoke to The Inquisitor. He's returned."

Tundra raised an eyebrow. "If that's the case, than where are the men that I sent with him and his troops?"

"Most likely dead, sir." The officer replied bluntly.

Tundra barely stopped himself from snapping the young upstart's neck there and then. Composing himself, he asked: "Where do I find him?"

"In his quarters. I must warn you, He gave strict orders not to be disturbed for the rest of the day."

"Unfortunately for him, I do not care for his orders." At this, Tundra set off for the Inquisitor's quarters.

The junior officer wet his lips before getting out of the general area. He was smart enough to realise that things were about to hit the fan.

* * *

 _ **The Inquisitor's Quarters…**_

Stepping into his inner sanctum, The Inquisitor took his lightsaber from his belt and placed it on the floor in front of him. Shortly after, he sat cross-legged on the floor and began to meditate. When he had been taught this, he had questioned why Sith and Dark Acolytes such as himself did so, reasoning that in his experience, it was to find peace. His trainer, Darth Vader himself, had curtly replied that it was a means to sharpen the edges of a Dark Side User's anger, and fine tune their familiarity with the Force. He could feel his anger, imagining it as a fine sword, crafted by the best in the trade, but in need of sharpening. Using his recent defeat by the Jedi as his whetstone, he began to build up his rage, sharpening the blade of his anger where it was blunt. But before he could do anything proper, he heard the sound of the door to his personal quarters opening. Without opening his eyes, he said: "I gave strict orders not to be disturbed."

"What if I was to tell you I didn't care?"

The Inquisitor smirked underneath his mask as he opened his eyes, seeing Tundra in front of him. Rising to his feet, the Inquisitor stared at Tundra, as if the anthropomorphic walrus was a test subject he was hoping on dissecting. "So, what do I owe the pleasure of this visit?"

"Where are my men?" Tundra demanded.

"Where else? They're dead, Tundra." The Inquisitor said bluntly.

Tundra, like he had with the junior officer, barely contained the urge to grab this individual and tear their head off. With barely contained rage, Tundra asked: "So you sent them like lambs to the slaughter."

"What do you expect? In chess, you send the pawns first." The Inquisitor retorted.

That did it. With an almost feral snarl, Tundra seized the Inquisitor's throat and slammed him against the wall. "Is that all you think of me? A pawn in this 'game of chess' that you can simply toss aside when you're done with me?"

"You, I don't. Your men are a whole other matter." The Inquisitor replied, his voice devoid of any emotion. "To me, they're expendable. As is Colonel Okada. I suspect they have likely found him a spare prison cell."

"So you let them capture him." Tundra said.

"The man was being insubordinate. I'm sure you would do the same were you in my position." The Inquisitor replied.

"That's as maybe." Tundra replied. "But it still doesn't change the fact that you sent one hundred and thirty of _my_ men to their deaths!"

"Deaths that will be avenged once I have accomplished my mission." The Inquisitor said.

Reluctantly, Tundra let him go. _"And_ when we rescue Eggman. As I recall, that was part of our deal."

"I remember perfectly. Just as long as you uphold your end of our agreement." The Inquisitor said. "Otherwise, the consequences will turn out rather… fatal."

"Please. Even _with_ that laser sword of yours, I could still snap your neck within seconds." Tundra declared boldly as he turned and walked out of the room, leaving the Inquisitor there to silently seethe over his insolence.

The Inquisitor turned and picked up his lightsaber and ignited it, gazing into the deep crimson of the blade. _Perhaps Tundra's usefulness will soon run its course,_ The Inquisitor thought. Only then would Tundra know just who exactly he had offended with his rudeness. It was either that, or Tundra would learn a lesson in humility at his hand. The Inquisitor's thoughts soon turned to the reinforcements Vader had promised him the day before. Upon contacting Vader earlier that day, The Inquisitor had learned that the assistance would be eight Shadow Guards, coupled with the two other Inquisitors that were coming. It was the Inquisitors that interested The Inquisitor most. For if they were who he thought, then things would start to become much more enjoyable.

* * *

 **Again, sorry for the delay. Things have been rather crazy for me as of late. I figured I'd write this chapter in order to explore the working relationship between The Inquisitor and Tundra. And it's pretty safe to say that things are rather tense. Don't you think?**

 **Other than that, Please leave your reviews, and May the Force be with you. Always.**

 **T-Rock14**


	11. Chapter 11: A Grim Reminder

**Chapter 11: A Grim Reminder**

 _ **Artika Prison Courtyard, 18:00 pm…**_

"This certainly looks a lot better." Ashley remarked as she walked outside, Roman at her side.

The vulpine Jedi didn't feel inclined to disagree. Currently, the courtyard now looked plenty more defensible than it initially had been. The G.U.N reinforcements Ashley had brought with her had been busy setting up fresh defences for the courtyard, including heavy blasters among other defences, such as artificial cover. Turning to his girlfriend, Roman replied: "Yeah. Definitely looks a lot better."

Ashley sighed as she laid her head on Roman's shoulder. "Hopefully, this gives us a chance to spend some more time together."

"I hope so too." Roman said, wrapping an arm protectively around Ashley's waist, pulling her closer. The added warmth comforted them both considerably.

Suddenly, Ashley asked: "My father's here isn't he?"

Roman scowled. "That he is."

Turning to Roman, Ashley said: "I want to see him."

Facing his girlfriend, Roman asked: "Why?"

"There are things I never got the chance to say to him when I last saw him. And he's still my father. I should at least let him see me. I owe him that much."

Roman sighed. "I guess I can agree with that. But believe me, if he makes one move, the only way he's _ever_ leaving this prison is in a body bag."

Ashley smirked. "I'd expect nothing less from my knight in shining armour." At this, she pecked Roman on the cheek.

Roman smiled before taking his arm from around her and said: "I'll go talk to Roth." At this, he turned and walked inside, finding Roth by the entrance to the mess hall talking to Tails. Roman smiled at this. _Probably trying to instil some of his old man wisdom on Tails,_ Roman thought. _Better save him from that, since that stuff only ever did nothing to help my training._ Walking up, Roman said: "I think my Padawan would rather be elsewhere, Roth. On top of that, I need to speak with you pertaining to a request from Ash."

"Slap me." Roth said, to which Roman obliged. "Not literally, ye little bastard!" He exclaimed, rubbing the cheek Roman had just bitch-slapped.

"Couldn't help myself." Roman said with a smirk. Getting to the point, Roman said: "Anyways, to be blunt, Ash wants to see her dad."

"Why in Yoda's ears would she want to see her old man after what he did to ye?" Roth asked, raising a bushy eyebrow.

"Says there are things she never got the chance to say to the fucker. Plus, she says she owes him a visit as he _is_ her father. Truth be told, I get where she's coming from." Roman said.

Roth sighed. "Can't argue with that." At this, he said: "Alright, go get her. Besides, I just gave him his dinner, and he was asking about her."

"Guess we have no choice then." Roman said as he turned and left, finding Ashley having just re-entered the complex. "Roth has acquiesced to your request to see old Freddie." He said.

Ashley's eyes narrowed. "Freddie? Is that my father's name now?"

"Blame Roth." Roman said pointedly.

"Fair enough." Ashley said. "Let's go."

* * *

 _ **Frederick's cell, not too long later…**_

When the sound of the cell peephole opened, Frederick had just finished the remains of his meal. Looking towards the peephole, his sole remaining eye narrowed. "Who's there?"

"Who do ye expect, Freddie?" Came Roth's voice. "Ye usually finish yer dinner quickly, so I decided I'd come along and get it before ye turn in for the night."

"Fair enough." Frederick said. "Just tell me you do _not_ have that furball you call your former apprentice here."

"Unfortunately, that's not possible." Came the voice of the sole person that Frederick had just said he didn't want to meet.

"Brilliant. Come for another chat have you?" Frederick said sarcastically.

"Uh, no." Roman said. "Well, I sort of have, but not in the capacity that you suspect."

"Oh?" Frederick said curiously. "Then what capacity _have_ you come to chat to me in?"

"How about chatting to your daughter?" Came another voice.

Frederick froze. Only one person he knew possessed that voice. And only one person he knew could call herself his daughter. "Ashley…"

The door to the cell opened, and Frederick gazed upon the silhouette that now cut off the light coming into his cell.

"That's me." Ashley said.

* * *

"Beautiful as ever." Frederick remarked as his sole eye adjusted to the sudden change.

"Well, I'm certainly better off in the looks department than you." Ashley remarked curtly. "You look like you've been through a blender that didn't agree with you and spat you out as a result."

"Well, there are two culprits for my current state, and one of them is the individual that you share a bed with." Frederick said bluntly.

"Which would be me." Roman said as he entered the cell. "But hey, you tried to kill me, and you nearly killed Ashley, so you can't exactly hold that against me. Sure, I took out your right eye, but hey, you could just as easily undergo surgery to have it replaced, same with your other missing limb."

"I could, but unfortunately this prison has none of those facilities save for the surgery table and the tools necessary to repair injuries less severe than that of a missing arm and a missing eye." Frederick said. Turning to Ashley, Frederick asked: "So why are you here, dear sweet daughter of mine?"

"Exactly that." Ashley said pointedly. "I may be that way when I'm among friends, but I'll never be that for you. You'll always be the monster that murdered my mother. You'll always be the monster that threatened _me_ with the same fate. Your _own daughter!"_

"Such is the fate of all who crossed me and angered me." Frederick said without a single hint of emotion.

Ashley clenched her fists as tears threatened to fall. She was not about to give her father the satisfaction of seeing her cry "Not only that, but you nearly killed the sole person who has been able to keep me happy, _the only person I've ever loved!"_ Ashley shouted.

It was all Roman could do to stop Ashley from going totally to town on her father. "I think we should go." Roman advised.

Ashley nodded. "I'm done here." At this, she and Roman walked out of the cell, but not before Frederick called out:

"I'm still your father, Ashley. Never forget that." Frederick reminded, a strong tone of menace emanating from him.

Ashley stopped herself from responding. He was dead to her now.

* * *

 **Apologies for the delay in updating. If you wish for an explanation, take a look at my Transformers and Sonic the Hedgehog Fanfic: The Zone of Silence. Look at the end of chapter 11. Also, I apologise for the cheesy ending to the chapter. My brain could not conjure up anything more creative.**

 **Other than that, please leave your reviews (NO FLAMES!), and May the Force be with you. Always.**

 **T-Rock14**


	12. Chapter 12: Arrival

**Chapter 12: Arrival**

 _ **Artika Egg Army Base, 26**_ _ **th**_ _ **June 3239, 20:30 pm**_

The outer doors of the Egg-Army base swept open as the Inquisitor, flanked by Tundra and the officer he had placed in command as a 'temporary replacement' for Colonel Okada, stepped out into the freezing cold of the outdoors, although the only one bothered by the drop in temperature was the officer.

"A-Are you sure we can't m-meet them inside?" The officer stuttered, frosted breath coming forth from his mouth. "It would certainly be much warmer."

"You should have thought of that before accompanying us, Major." The Inquisitor said pointedly, icy breath coming from his mask. "It is not my fault you have a gross lack of fortitude for this sort of thing."

"A-Apologies, Inquisitor. It shall not happen again." The Major replied.

"See that it doesn't." The Inquisitor said, affixing his glare on the officer, under which the officer visibly fought to contain his fear. Turning away in disgust, The Inquisitor simply stood there, with his arms behind his back, looking as formal as was possible. Cold didn't bother him. It never would. In fact, he found it great, seeing the benefits of cold weather for the lungs.

Tundra stood a little to the Inquisitor's right, not seeming bothered by the cold at all. Then again, he had lived in this climate for many years, and he was not about to let the cold bother him now. Further bolstering his warmth was the clothing he was wearing.

The Major, however, was nothing short of freezing. Though he fought not to allow his discomfort to be visible, he could not help a small shake every now and then.

None of the present individuals knew how long it was, though for the Major, it felt like several hours, they caught sight of something in the sky, something headed right for them.

The Inquisitor noticed this, and smiled behind his mask. They had come.

The object in the sky soon took the shape of a Lambda-class T-4a Shuttle, its sleek white frame almost making it stand out in the night sky, which was clear of blizzards. For the moment. Almost as quickly as it had been seen, the shuttle began its descent, the trihedral foils moving upwards until they were in landing position, at which point, the shuttle made landfall.

The ramp leading into the shuttle opened, and the Inquisitor's smile widened.

"Welcome to Mobius." The Inquisitor said.

* * *

Tundra had to steel himself to avoid being intimidated.

Descending the ramp were two other Inquisitors, one of them masked like the Grand Inquisitor, but differing in size and stature.

The Inquisitor that was most of the way down the ramp was without a doubt female. Her face could not be seen, as it was hidden behind her mask, which was similar to the Grand Inquisitor's. But what could be seen was her stunning figure, hidden behind similar attire to that of the Grand Inquisitor's. It was lithe and agile, slightly built, but well compacted, like an athletic runner. Attached to her belt were two lightsabers. Aside from that, she was short, standing at perhaps five-foot ten.

The other Inquisitor was the precise opposite, standing at about seven feet tall, and powerfully built. He was wearing a similar ensemble to that of the female Inquisitor, but completely sleeveless, exposing the enormous arms of the being. As well as that, he had no helmet, showing that he was a Zabrak, pale yellow of skin colour, with red Sith tattoos marking his face. His eyes gleamed a seething yellow, a common occurrence with users of the Dark Side. Hanging from his left hip was clearly a double bladed lightsaber.

Tundra especially eyed the Zabrak Inquisitor. He looked like he could tear the female Inquisitor completely in two. Furthermore, he was finding it hard to retain his composure with three Inquisitors standing before him.

The female Inquisitor took a few more steps and knelt, as did the Zabrak. "Grand Inquisitor. It's an honour to fight by your side."

The Grand Inquisitor chuckled. "It's an honour to finally be able to fight at yours." He motioned with his hand. "Come. We have much to discuss. And bring the Shadow Guards too."

"Shadow Guards-?!" The Major blurted out just as eight of said guards followed the newly arrived Inquisitors out of the shuttle.

The Shadow Guards bore a striking resemblance to Emperor Palpatine's Royal Guard, but were far different in clothing colours. Most of their clothing was as black as night, with the only difference in colour being the single strip visor that allowed sight, which was a seething blood red.

Tundra blinked in surprise. Just what was going on?" Shaking his head to clear it, Tundra followed the new arrivals inside the base, finding himself having to drag the Major in with him.

* * *

 _ **Egg-Army Base Command Centre…**_

The three Inquisitors surrounded the holo-map, with only Tundra and the Major present. Displayed on the map was a map of the Artika Prison, still in a similar state to how The Grand Inquisitor had left it during a renewed attack on the prison the previous day, which had merely been to soften up the enemy forces and remind them he was still there.

"Looks like you've done some damage." The female Inquisitor said as she circled the map.

"Not as much as would be my preference, but yes, some damage indeed." The Grand Inquisitor replied.

"So what is the plan now?" The Zabrak Inquisitor said in thickly accented Basic.

"I am planning an attack on several fronts tonight." The Grand Inquisitor replied. "At midnight, one of our AT-AT Walkers will move forward with a company of troops and attack their front flank, with me and several Shadow Guards in the lead. You and your companion will lead two Shadow Guards and a platoon of Snowtroopers each in via two side entrances our probe droids discovered last night, one on either side of the prison." At this, he allocated a side to either Inquisitor, who nodded approval.

"Where do my men come in, Inquisitor?" Tundra demanded.

"Your men will join me in the frontal assault." The Inquisitor said.

"Good." Tundra said.

"Unfortunately, their leader won't be you." The Inquisitor growled as he tore his lightsaber from his belt, raised it up high, and brought it down on Tundra, slashing the portly, elderly walrus from his left shoulder to his right hip.

Tundra instantly stiffened at the sudden move and fell to his knees, as several Egg-Army soldiers watched in horror. Looking up at The Grand Inquisitor, Tundra could only grunt: "Why?"

"Your usefulness to me has run its course." The Grand Inquisitor declared simply, raising his lightsaber once more and beheading Tundra with a single stroke.

* * *

Everyone save for the other Inquisitors, stood staring at the Grand Inquisitor with horror as Tundra's now headless corpse toppled to the floor.

"As I said, his usefulness had run its course." The Grand Inquisitor reiterated as he returned his lightsaber to his belt. Turning to the Egg-Army soldiers present, The Grand Inquisitor ordered: "Spread the word. You and your comrades are under _my_ command now."

The soldiers all nodded nervously, and exited the room.

"Harsh… But I understand your reasoning." The female Inquisitor remarked.

"As do I." The Zabrak Inquisitor added.

"Glad to see you both agree." The Grand Inquisitor stated. "Now, all there is to do is plan for what is to come _after_ we eliminate the Jedi."

"Yes…" The Zabrak said, almost trancelike.

"What is to come after we eliminate the Jedi?" The Major asked.

"Stay, and you'll find out." The Grand Inquisitor said.

* * *

 _ **Meanwhile, Artika Prison…**_

Roman stepped out into the courtyard and surveyed the area, a perturbed look on his face. It was only a few minutes ago that he'd felt a large disturbance in the Force. It had been if someone he knew had suddenly been struck down without warning. He had since ascertained that everyone he knew and cared about were alright, alongside Tails and Roth, since both had felt the disturbance as well, being Jedi.

"Roman?"

Roman turned to see Ashley standing in the doorway, looking nothing short of concerned. "Yeah?"

"What's wrong? You've been acting really strange for the past few minutes." Ashley inquired.

"Sorry." Roman said. "I just felt a large disturbance in the Force. Like… someone I know was suddenly struck down without warning."

Ashley's eyes narrowed. "Well, whoever it was, I'm sorry for the loss."

"Until I find out who it was, don't be." Roman said. "No use mourning for the dead until you know who it was." Roman turned and folded his arms, looking out from his position.

Ashley trudged over, sensing something else was wrong. "There's something else, isn't there?"

Roman sighed. "I just have this feeling."

"What kind of feeling?" Ashley asked.

"A bad one. I've got a bad feeling in my gut that something bad is going to happen. And it's going to happen _very_ soon." Roman elaborated.

Moving closer, Ashley turned Roman to face her, saying: "Well, if that's the case, then we'll face it together. As we always have." She sealed the statement with a gentle kiss.

Roman pulled Ashley closer as the kiss intensified, as their bodies began to heat up considerably.

Breaking the kiss, both lovers shook their heads to clear them.

"Damn…" Roman remarked to himself.

"Wow…" Ashley said before she locked lips with Roman again, this time jumping up and wrapping both legs around her boyfriend's waist.

Suddenly, Roman broke the kiss, frowning.

"What now?" Ashley said, starting to grow annoyed.

"I just realised something." Roman said.

Ashley's eyes narrowed. "What?"

"That tonight could be our last. If my gut proves right, this could well be the last night we have together." Roman replied.

Ashley bowed her head. Roman raised a strong point. A thought came to mind that made her blush, but her expression soon turned into a warm smile. "If that turns out to be true… Then how about we make tonight one to remember?"

Roman gave her a confused look before realising what she was getting at. If tonight _was_ their last, then he'd want the same. Nodding, he brought his lips to hers, and Ashley once again wrapped her legs around Roman's waist as they headed inside.

Once inside their room, Roman pinned Ashley against the wall, as she said:

"Don't even _think_ about stopping." She said.

Roman didn't, and for that night, only the shadows witnessed what came to pass between them.

* * *

 **Now, were I good at writing scenes involving sexual content, I would, but I'm not, so don't get your hopes up. Plus, this fic is rated T, so were I to write scenes of a sexual nature, the admins of this site would likely flock like birds to my account and take down the stories I have worked hard to bring to you from the inner depths of my mind.**

 **Moving on from that, please leave your reviews (NO FLAMES!), and May the Force be with you. Always.**

 **T-Rock14**


	13. Chapter 13: Midnight Assault

**Chapter 13: Midnight Assault**

 _ **Look-out post at Artika Prison, Midnight.**_

"How goes the night, boy?" Roth asked a younger prison guard.

"Not bad, sir. I haven't seen anything out of the ordinary." The younger guard stated.

"I certainly hope ye haven't." Roth said. "You'd better head inside, get some rest. I'll take it from here."

"Are you sure, sir?" The younger guard asked.

"Aye. I'll be fine. Not the first time I've had to watch the fort." Roth said.

"Okay, sir." The young guard said as he walked back inside.

Roth sighed as he sat in the lookout's chair. He'd found himself unable to sleep tonight, what with the disturbance in the Force and a grim sense of foreboding. It also hadn't helped that he'd decided to give Roman quarters right next to his, and that had effectively given him a front row seat to what Roman was doing with Ashley in his room currently. So he'd decided to wait it out, and return to bed when he felt they were done with their cavorting. Then again, had he been able to, he would have likely done the same. Furthermore, he had passed Sonic and Sally's quarters, and had heard something similar. Again, he couldn't blame them. He suspected everyone was getting a bad feeling about tonight, so Sonic and Sally consummating their marriage, as well as Roman getting some from Ashley, was understandable. He almost envied them for being able to enjoy what could be their last night together. But he wasn't complaining. He had enjoyed his life, and was ready to give it up to defend the others. If that was his fate.

A distant sound came to his ears, sounding like footsteps. _Very_ heavy footsteps. Roth's eyes narrowed as he grabbed the electro-binoculars that had been left there, and looked through them, in the hope of discerning what on earth the noise was. And boy, was he horrified.

Clanking towards them was one of the Imperial Walkers Roman had discovered, cannons primed and ready, and aimed at the prison wall _on_ which Roth was sitting. Flanking it were several Imperial Troop Transports, and Snowspeeders piloted by the Artika Egg Army. Roth scowled as he rose from his seat, glaring at the coming threat.

Then, he turned and ran inside, planning to warn the others.

* * *

 _ **Inside, Roman and Ashley's room, not too long later…**_

Ashley collapsed on Roman's chest, short of breath. "Roman…"

Roman placed a finger to Ashley's lips and said: "No need to say anything, Ashley. Just know that whatever happens tonight or tomorrow, I'll always love you."

Ashley smiled as she traced a circle on Roman's scarred chest with her fingers. "As I'll always love you." At this, she leaned in for a kiss.

Roman would have obliged, had the door not burst open at that exact moment, at which Ashley instantly covered up.

"Wake up guys! Roth just raised the alarm! We're under attack!" Came the voice of Tails.

Roman was now instantly alert as he sprinted into the shower that the quarters gave him, quickly showering in order to wash off the residue of the activity that he and Ashley had only just enjoyed before he came back out, drying himself off and getting dressed, attaching his lightsaber and DL-44 to his belt as Ashley showered.

"Don't wait for me!" Ashley called out over the sound of running water. "Get out there and show the Empire whose boss!"

"Will do, Ash!" Roman said as he and Tails dashed out of the room and headed towards the war-room.

As they ran, Tails turned to Roman and asked: "Since you were both nude, I assume you and Ashley were-"

"Having sex? Yes." Roman replied. Stopping, Roman turned to Tails and said: "Before we do anything, let me tell you something. In a time like this, it's always best to make the most of any opportunity to do something you want to do. Me and Ashley, this could well be our last night together, and I wanted to make it one she and I remembered, in case one or both of us died tonight."

"Don't say that, Roman. I won't let you die." Tails said.

"You may not get a choice." Roman said gravely. "Now let's get to the War Room!"

Tails nodded and the two soon entered the war room, where everyone was dressed for combat. Roman could feel the room shaking, as if the Imperial Walker's bombardment of the outer wall was causing a minor earthquake.

Roth was standing at the head of the table, looking extremely grim as he watched the outer wall getting absolutely pummelled by the walker's fire, scowling as the wall steadily crumbled under the sheer force of the oncoming fire.

"Looks like this is it, lads and lasses." Roth said. "Make or break time."

"Hold on." Roman said. "I saw three Walkers at the base. So why is there only one?"

"They could be being held back until we're all dead, so that _when_ we're all dead, they can demolish the prison and make it our tomb." Shadow said.

"Not exactly boosting morale, Shadow." Sally remarked. "And besides, there's no guarantee that we'll all be dead when this is over."

"The Princess has a point." Roth said. "We're not dead yet. Which means we can still take some of them with us." As he said this, another guard burst in, looking dishevelled.

"Sir, both side entrances have been breached! We have Snowtroopers giving our boys hell!"

"Well, that's certainly an indication of how crap things are going for us so far." Roman said sarcastically. "We could certainly use some other help so far." Turning to Sally, Roman asked: "Speaking of which, where's that contingent your old man promised us?"

"Never came through. Too much opposition from the Council, who're sceptical about openly fighting the Empire." Sally said.

"Fucking cowards." Roman said. "Remind me to kick their chairman in the balls when we get back to Mobotropolis. If he even has any."

Everyone chuckled before Roth said: "Alright, Roman, take Ashley and some of the Freedom Fighters to reinforce the Eastern Entrance. Sally, take some of the Freedom Fighters and make yer stand at the Western Entrance. Me, Shadow, Rouge and the rest of us will defend the main courtyard. Understood?"

"Understood, Roth." Sally said. "Okay, Sonic, Tails, Bunnie, Antoine and Rotor, with me!" Sally said as she ran out of the room."

"Okay." Roman said. "Guess that leaves me with Team Rose, and Rotor. Okay, you guys, with me and Ashley!" At this, Roman and his group made to leave. Roman took a few steps, but stopped and retraced his steps, headed to Roth as the two shared a fierce embrace. "If this is the last time we see one another in this life, then May the Force be with you."

"And with ye lad. If it's me who kicks the bucket, then I'll see you on the other side." Roth said.

Roman gripped Roth's arm as he turned and followed his team out towards the prison's Eastern Entrance.

* * *

 _ **Eastern Entrance…**_

Looking around the corner, Roman could see that things weren't exactly going well for the individuals tasked with defending the area.

An entire platoon of Imperial Stormtroopers, thirty two in number, had taken positions in and around the area around the doorway leading outside, laying down a constant stream of fire at the ten or less prison guards holding it. Turning to his comrades, Roman asked: "Ready?"

All assembled nodded.

"Awesome." Roman said. "Now, let's move!" At this, he drew his DL-44 and ran into combat, laying down some fire for himself and his friends as he did. Once he had reached something he could use as cover, he ducked down behind it, swearing as oncoming fire hammered against his chosen cover.

"Sir! Glad you're here. You bring reinforcements?" the commanding officer of the guards asked.

As if on cue, Ashley ran up, taking cover next to Roman. "You sure have good choices for cover, Roman." She remarked.

"I do my best." Roman replied as he poked out of cover and snapped off a few shots.

Ashley smiled as she did the same, the both of them killing a few of the troopers.

"Well, that was lucky." Roman said as they returned to cover.

"Or it's just an example of superior marksmanship." Ashley said with a smirk.

"Are you saying you're better than me?" Roman asked playfully.

"I might be." Ashley said gently.

Roman sighed before rolling out of cover and loosing a few blaster bolts at the Snowtroopers. "Time for a boost to morale." Roman thought to himself as he holstered his blaster pistol and instead drew his lightsaber. The blue blade flared to life in direct view of the Snowtroopers, who balked.

"It's one of the Jedi! Focus fire on him!" called out one of the troopers, likely their CO.

The Snowtroopers promptly obliged, aiming their combined firepower at Roman.

Roman charged forward, dodging or deflecting the oncoming bolts until he was close enough to mount his own offensive. Reaching out with the Force, Roman took hold of one of the Snowtroopers, and used the Force to pull him closer, impaling the trooper on his lightsaber. Pulling the blade free, Roman spun his lightsaber and began his offensive in earnest, following things up by slashing a second trooper from shoulder to hip, and opening the throat of a third with a deft stroke that nearly decapitated the Snowtrooper. Turning from them, Roman blocked several more blaster bolts and redirected them at the trooper that fired them, just as another came up behind him, prepared to restrain him. Roman sensed this coming, and so spun his lightsaber and stabbed backwards, driving his blade through the stomach of the trooper behind him, who fell without a second thought.

Within seconds of Roman starting his head-on attack, it was over, and all the Snowtroopers lay dead.

Roman spun his lightsaber, but did not extinguish it, the blade's hum the only noise in the large corridor. Turning to the guards and the other Freedom Fighters, Roman commanded: "Head to the courtyard. Roth likely needs a few extra hands."

"What about you, Mr Roman?" Cream asked.

"I'll be fine, Cream." Roman said. "Not the first time I've taken on overwhelming odds by myself."

"Except you're not by yourself. You have me." Ashley said gently as she came up, kissing Roman gently on the cheek.

Roman smiled as he turned to the others and said: "Get moving. Like I said, Roth likely needs all the support he can get."

"Will do." Amy said, turning to the others. "You heard Roman! Get moving!"

The guards jumped slightly at this, and backed away before heading in the direction of the courtyard, followed by Team Rose and Rotor.

Ashley turned to Roman. "So what now?"

Roman held out a hand. "Hang back. I want to check the entrance out." Roman said as he approached the subject of his sentence, prepared for anything. Or so he thought.

Almost instantly, two lightsaber blades, each coloured a deadly looking crimson, became visible, accompanied by another one to the right, and another to the left.

Roman drew a sharp breath as he muttered: "Oh, shit."

* * *

 **I know how you're likely to feel about leaving you with a cliffhanger as annoying as this, but my apologies, it simply had to be done.**

 **Besides, please leave your reviews, and May the Force be with you. Always.**

 **T-Rock14**


	14. Chapter 14: The Ultimate Fate

**Chapter 14: The Ultimate Fate**

Roman stepped backwards cautiously, not taking his eyes off of the four red lightsaber blades glaring back at him as if to say: _Hello! Prepare to have your facial features rearranged!_

The four blades followed him, revealing a massive Zabrak wielding a double bladed lightsaber, and two black robed individuals, each wielding a Lightsaber Pike.

Roman studied the Zabrak first. The Zabrak was extremely tall. Well, not as tall as some other large opponents that Roman had faced in his life until now. The Zabrak had pale yellow skin, with blood red Sith tattoos covering it, including his face. Roman scowled at this. Were the tattoos black, Roman would have been facing an almost exact copy of Savage Oppress, one of the toughest foes he had ever faced. But the tattoos were red, and so, no such resemblance. His arms had no sleeves, which showed the Zabrak's immense musculature on his arms. There was no denying the immense power in the Zabrak's body, which Roman took note of. For clothing, the Zabrak was wearing an intimidating series of garments that gave a stark resemblance to the Inquisitor's.

Roman then gave his attention to the two robed figures accompanying the Zabrak. They were each garbed in attire similar to the Republic Senate Guard that Roman remembered from the Clone Wars. Except that their garb was entirely black, save for the single red strip visor that stretched across their helmets. Their Lightsaber Pikes glowed with a deep red, signifying their allegiance.

Turning his attention to the Zabrak, Roman demanded: "Who the fuck are you? An Inquisitor?"

"Correct." Said the Zabrak in heavily accented Basic. He gestured to the Guards. "And these, are Shadow Guards. You have no doubt as to my purpose here, I presume?"

"Yeah. I know why you're here. To kill me." Roman said, now standing his ground.

Behind Roman, Ashley visibly tensed. She remembered when Roman and her had been dealing with Frederick six months before. Frederick had had similar intentions.

The Zabrak smiled, a wide grin that revealed a set of yellow teeth that were filed down to points. "That is also correct."

"So, where's the real Inquisitor? Or are you expendable to him?" Roman asked.

"The Grand Inquisitor is leading the assault on the courtyard." The Zabrak Inquisitor said.

Roman inhaled sharply. "Roth…"

"Yes." The Zabrak Inquisitor said. "But I shouldn't worry. You won't live long enough to see him die. Guards, kill him!"

At this, the two Shadow Guards hurled themselves at Roman, who grimly readied himself.

* * *

 _ **Western Entrance…**_

The last Snowtrooper fell to one of Tails' lightsabers, the head smoothly truncated from the neck.

Sally watched this with a smile as she pulled one of her ringblades from the corpse of a Snowtrooper she'd killed just before. "Nice job Tails. You're getting real good with those things."

"Heh. I do my best." Tails said, turning off his shoto and reattaching it to his belt. "But, I'm equally as good with just one."

"I can vouch for that." Sonic said.

"Most of us can." Bunnie said pointedly.

"I guess zose swordsmanship lessons I gave you are paying off, Tails." Antoine said.

"Partly. They helped give me a little knowledge of how to wield a melee weapon like a lightsaber or sword, so thanks." Tails said.

Sally made to say more, but she looked behind Tails, and her jubilant face fell. "Tails…"

Tails tensed, looking behind him and instantly scowled.

Standing before him were three black-clad figures, with two wearing garb that Tails recalled as similar to what Roman had described the Senate Guard, but black, and with a single red strip visor for them to see through. In their hands was each some sort of pike-like object.

The black-clad figure in the middle was different. A _lot_ different. The figure on the middle was clearly female, sporting a lithe, athletic, but well-proportioned figure, much like Sally did. Her face was not visible, hidden by a mask similar to that which the Inquisitor wore.

Tails quickly noticed that she was wearing a lot of attire which was similar to the Inquisitor's attire, but more was of a black colour. Readying himself for anything, Tails asked: "Who are you? Friend, or foe?"

"Funny. I'd have figured you'd be smart enough to answer that." The female replied, igniting two crimson lightsabers, one in each hand.

The guards both did the same, revealing their pike-like weapons to be lightsabers.

Tails inhaled sharply. He was certainly not liking the odds at the moment. Deciding to delay things, Tails asked: "So what's the plan? You planning on killing me, or dragging me in for interrogation and or trying to turn me to the Dark Side?"

"Depends on whether you impress or disappoint me." The female Inquisitor replied. Turning to her allies, the female Inquisitor commanded: "Deal with the others. The boy is mine!" At this, she leaped towards Tails, lightsabers at the ready.

Tails sighed before drawing his shoto and raising his other lightsaber. This was going to be a long day.

* * *

 _ **Courtyard…**_

Roth grunted as he buried his lightsaber into the chest of another Shadow Guard. He'd already killed two before that one, in an effort to reach the Grand Inquisitor, who was waiting behind just one more Shadow Guard who instantly attacked.

Roth dodged the downward strike and let out a powerful kick, knocking the guard back a matter of paces before attacking himself, slashing at the guard's waist in an effort to cut him in two.

The Shadow Guard jumped back from this attack, and made a sweeping attack at Roth's legs, hoping to cut him down that way.

Roth was more quick though, blocking the blow easily and landing a punch that knocked the guard back. Taking advantage of this, Roth ducked another attack made at his head, and used the opening it provided him with to make a trench in the Shadow Guard's abdomen with his lightsaber. As the corpse fell to the floor, Roth looked up at the Grand Inquisitor, who now approached, lightsaber at the ready.

"Back for more?" The Inquisitor asked.

"Ye owe me a rematch from a matter of days ago." Roth said.

"So I do." The Grand Inquisitor asked. Readying himself, the Grand Inquisitor asked: "Shall we?"

Roth nodded, and the two charged one another, their blades meeting in a shower of sparks.

Breaking the blade lock, The Grand Inquisitor immediately launched a counter offensive, using his blade to batter at Roth's defences.

Roth held up against the assault, blocking a blow that would have cleaved him in two, parrying another that would have left him minus his right forearm, and ducking a third blow that would have hewn his head from his neck and shoulders. _Would be easier if my lightsaber was still double bladed,_ Roth thought. But enough regretful thinking. Now was the time for battle. With this thought, he launched an offensive of his own, using his knowledge of Ataru to mount an aggressive offence. Were he younger, he'd be utilising all the flips and manoeuvres that Yoda was famous for, albeit not as impressive. But he was sixty three now, and he felt too old to be performing such tricks.

The Inquisitor parried all of the blows without effort, pushing Roth away and taunting: "I hate to break it to you, Roth, but in both of our duels, as in the one we had a few days ago and the one we're having now, I've been grossly disappointed. Were you not the man who defeated Count Dooku in one on one combat?"

"I'm hearing a lot of speech, lad, but when it comes to fighting, you're being more of a disappointment then you view me to be." Roth replied.

The Inquisitor grip tightened on his lightsaber as he instantly renewed his assault on Roth.

* * *

 _ **Back with Roman and Ashley…**_

With a mighty roar, Roman beheaded the other Shadow Guard, exhaling hard as the body fell to the floor.

The Zabrak Inquisitor rolled his eyes as he spun his saber-staff and advanced on Roman.

Roman looked at him coming and spun his lightsaber, grimly preparing for the hardest lightsaber duel he had gone through since facing Count Dooku several years before.

The Zabrak instantly went on the attack, jabbing forward as if he were wielding a spear.

Roman leaped to the right, using the momentum to parry the oncoming blow with a downward stroke before bringing his lightsaber back up to block another blow. Following this, he countered by kicking the Zabrak in the knee.

The Zabrak didn't even grimace, but instead retaliated with a vicious left hook to the face.

Roman staggered away, seeing multi-coloured spots within his vision before he shook his head to clear the cobwebs from his skull, just in time to parry and lead the Zabrak's blade off to the right, as he once again kicked at the Zabrak, in an effort to stagger the brute.

The Zabrak saw this coming, and grabbed Roman's leg with his left arm, holding Roman's leg within the crook.

"Crap…" Roman said as the Zabrak swung him to his right, throwing him into the wall and causing him to drop his lightsaber. Looking up, Roman barely had time to duck the Zabrak's attempt to pin him to the wall, rolling to the right and recalling his lightsaber to his hand and reigniting it.

The Zabrak didn't appear fazed, instead spinning his lightsaber like a battle-staff and attacking yet again.

Roman started blocking and parrying, countering where he could and beginning to open small wounds on the Zabrak. With luck, he'd be able to score a major hit on the Zabrak and finish this battle.

* * *

 _ **Western Entrance…**_

Tails grunted as he flew back as a result of a spinning kick to his gut from the Female Inquisitor. Using his namesakes, Tails was able to regain control of himself and return to his position on his own two feet.

The Female Inquisitor was back upon him in an instant, slashing at Tails with a vicious array of slashes and jabs, again testing Tails' defences, as she had spent the past few minutes of their fight doing.

Tails parried the blows as they came, using his shoto as a shield while he made occasional probing counterattacks with his normal lightsaber. But what he couldn't defend against was physical strikes. He barely ducked one of those before it connected, before leaping up and landing a picture perfect drop-kick on the Female Inquisitor, knocking her down.

Getting to her feet, the Female Inquisitor managed to parry an attempt by Tails to stab her through the chest and land a kick to the back of Tails knee.

Tails grimaced as his hand instinctively went to his left knee and he limped away.

Leaping to her feet, the Female Inquisitor pounced, slashing at Tails with her left hand lightsaber, and stabbing at Tails with her right.

Tails parried both, the slash with his normal lightsaber, and used his shoto to knock the stab aside, countering with a firm headbutt to the Female Inquisitor's face, and following that up with a slash at her face, letting out a triumphant yell as he scored a hit.

The Female Inquisitor leaped back as soon as the blow hit, feeling for any facial damage. Ascertaining that there was no such damage, except to her mask. Sighing, the Female Inquisitor looked back up at Tails, revealing a single yellow eye.

Tails scowled as he spun his lightsabers and held them at the ready.

The Female Inquisitor nodded as she switched off her left hand lightsaber and reached for her mask, tearing it from her face. "And now you know what lies beneath." She snarled.

Tails blinked in surprise. He had been expecting something he was unfamiliar with, like something out of the Unknown Regions Roman sometimes mentioned.

What he saw instead was a human face, one that Tails would have seen as very beautiful, had the Female Inquisitor's skin not been deathly pale of colour, and her eyes a deep yellow. Her hair, pinned back by braids, was a vibrant crimson, crimson as the lightsabers she held.

"I would call you beautiful, but that's not going to happen unless you get a tan." Tails said.

"Thank you for the compliment, but I'm afraid it won't work!" The Female Inquisitor shouted as she reignited her left hand lightsaber and renewed her attack on Tails.

* * *

 _ **Eastern Entrance, with Roman…**_

Roman grunted as he once again hit the wall, a result of the Zabrak Inquisitor having sent him flying with a vicious front kick to the chest that had sent him flying.

The Zabrak, having switched off one of his lightsaber blades, now slashed at Roman with the one he still had activated, in an effort to cut Roman head to toe.

Roman brought his lightsaber up and blocked the blow, grimacing as he tried to push back against the larger and stronger Zabrak.

Ashley, who was watching from a distance, cupped her hands around her mouth and said: "Don't give up Roman! You can do this!"

Roman heard her words and took strength in them, realising he was not going to win the saber lock he and the Zabrak were currently involved in, so, stepping to the right, he let his and the Zabrak's blades sink to the floor, and seeing an opening, he stomped at the Zabrak's left knee, where he had opened a wound moments earlier. To his relief, it finally buckled, with the Zabrak now on one knee as a result. Taking advantage, Roman took his lightsaber in his left hand, and lashed out with his right fist, connecting with the Zabrak's jaw. Much to his chagrin, this did nothing.

The Zabrak merely spat out a tooth, reached out with his left hand, grabbed Roman by the head, and drove the Vulpine Jedi's head straight into the wall.

Roman grimaced at the impact, before he sank to the floor, dazed.

" _NO!"_ Ashley called out.

The Zabrak Inquisitor let out a roar of triumph as he raised his lightsaber, prepared to deliver a coup de grace to his fallen foe.

And he would have, had two blaster bolts not caught him in the back. Grimacing with the pain, the Zabrak turned to face the culprit: Ashley.

Ashley, now with his attention, began snapping off as many shots as she could, determined not to let the Zabrak win.

The Zabrak blocked every single blow before reaching out with his left hand, making a pincer of it.

Ashley suddenly found her throat being gripped by some invisible force, and started to struggle for breath. Her feet left the floor, and she dropped her pistol, grabbing at the invisible hand clutching her windpipe.

"You put up a good fight, little lady." The Zabrak said. "But unfortunately, you are no match for the Dark Side." At this, he raised his lightsaber, and would have pulled her to him in order to impale her, had a blue blade not slashed through his left arm, causing his left forearm to topple to the floor, along with Ashley, who began coughing uncontrollably.

The Zabrak roared in pain, dropping his saber staff and clutching the stump of where his left arm used to be. When he looked up again, he saw the same blade that had severed his arm hurtling towards him, and once it struck, everything went black.

Roman exhaled deeply as the Zabrak's now headless corpse sank to the floor, sinking to his knees, and grimacing in pain. Then again, he'd battled worse. Getting to his feet once more, Roman turned to where Ashley was now sitting, slowly regaining her breath. Walking over, he knelt next to her. "You alright?"

"I will be." Ashley said, her breath now having returned to her completely.

Roman smiled and kissed her forehead, helping her up. "Come on." He said. "Roth likely needs help."

Ashley picked up her blaster and holstered it, and together, the two lovers headed for the Courtyard.

* * *

 _ **Courtyard…**_

Roth blocked another blow from the Grand Inquisitor and used the lock to double the Dark Acolyte over with a brutal knee to the gut.

The Grand Inquisitor's breath exploded from his lungs and he doubled over, though he had the wherewithal to spin out of the way of Roth's downward slash, which had been meant to behead him. Backing off slightly, the Grand Inquisitor spun his lightsaber and held it at the ready, prepared for Roth's attack.

Roth attacked instantly, spinning his lightsaber and then slashing at the Grand Inquisitor with a brutal stroke meant to again, behead the Inquisitor.

The Grand Inquisitor parried this blow, and did the same with the next, falling back under the assault until he finally saw an opening, headbutting Roth square in the face, feeling the old man's nose break under the blow.

Roth grimaced in pain as he staggered back, feeling hot blood begin streaming down his face. Scowling, he lunged at the Grand Inquisitor, slashing crosswise at his foe.

The Grand Inquisitor parried, only to feel the shock that came from Roth's lightsaber hilt being slammed into his face, which loosened a tooth, and dislodged his mask, but not enough to reveal his face.

Seizing the opening, Roth lunged, and with a fearsome war cry, he crosscut for the Grand Inquisitor's neck, determined to hew the Inquisitor's head from his shoulders.

The Grand Inquisitor saw this, and parried, using the momentum to spin out of the blade lock. As he did this, he reversed his lightsaber, and rode it into a stab that pierced Roth dead centre in the chest and burst through the other side.

Roth's face fell as his lightsaber switched off and dropped from his hand, landing uselessly on the floor. Looking down, he looked at the crimson blade he was currently impaled on, and then back up at the Grand Inquisitor.

Without releasing his grip on his lightsaber, the Grand Inquisitor reached for his mask, and slowly pulled it off, revealing his face to everyone at last.

And how they gasped.

Roth looked up into the face of one he once knew, one he had personally taken to the Jedi Temple after discovering him., only to have to bring him back, ashamed of his failure.

The Grand Inquisitor was Mobian, an anthropomorphic Chipmunk, like Sally, but clearly male. His eyes, once blue, now gleamed yellow, burning with the darkness of the Dark Side of the Force. His face was handsome, but the expression stretching across it was one of contempt for the old man impaled on his blade. His face was framed by two shades of brown fur, one lighter than the other. What gave him away was the neatly combed dark auburn hair on his head. He watched as Roth grimaced, whether in pain or horror, was unknown.

Looking up, Roth choked out one word. A name. A name the Grand Inquisitor rarely used, and only allowed those closest to him to speak. "Elias…"

The Grand Inquisitor pushed his lightsaber further into the old man, burying his lightsaber up to the hilt into the old man and holding him in an embrace. As he held Roth there, he whispered: "Everything you know and love will burn. This prison… Mobotropolis… It will _all_ burn. And _you_ can't stop me now. No-one can." With this final statement, he jerked his weapon free of the old man, allowing the dying Jedi to fall to the floor. Looking up and around at his remaining men, the Grand Inquisitor said: "Finish up here, boys. We're done." At this, he turned on his heel and swept out of the courtyard, as the Snowtroopers began to slaughter the survivors.

* * *

 **Little question: Who guessed the Grand Inquisitor was Elias? Sorry if he's a little OOC in this, but I needed a suitable villain. I figured if I played around a little bit with Elias' character, I'd turn him evil.**

 **Other than that, please leave your reviews, and May the Force be with you. Always.**

 **T-Rock14**


	15. Chapter 15: To Lose a Friend

**Chapter 15: To Lose a Friend**

 _ **With Roman…**_

The shock hit Roman without warning, the feeling as powerful as a point blank shot from a heavy blaster pistol. His body spasmed. His stomach sank and he doubled over with a grunt as his vision blurred. Furthermore, his legs felt like they were going to give way on him at any second, and one did, forcing him on one knee. His breath came out in long, ragged gasps as he felt a long sharp stab of agony unlike any he'd felt before.

Ashley saw this, and was instantly at her boyfriend's side. "Roman? Roman, what's wrong?"

Roman didn't respond, his eyes almost glazed over as if he were dead.

Taking Roman by the shoulders, Ashley shook him hard. "Roman! Talk to me!"

Roman, finally snapping out of his shocked stupor, looked up at Ashley, still looking in shock. "I just felt a deep disturbance in the Force. Unlike anything I've felt before. It was like some sort of stabbing pain, as if I'd been stabbed."

Ashley's eyes narrowed as she made to ask further, but before she could inquire further, Roman's com-link came on, with Tails' frantic, scared voice coming through:

"Roman? Roman, do you copy? Respond!" Tails was shouting through the comm, sounding close to tears.

"I read you Tails." Roman said reassuringly.

"Thank the Goddess." Tails said. "Did you feel that?"

"You mean the stabbing pain I just got in my chest? Yes." Roman replied.

"I don't know about that, but I meant that disturbance in the Force." Tails said pointedly.

"That was how I felt it, Tails." Roman replied. "It's like someone close to us just got stabbed fatally."

"Sounds good to me, but everyone on my side is perfectly fine. You?"

"Ashley's fine. I sent Team Rose and Rotor back into the courtyard to assist-" Then it hit him, and his eyes widened to the size of watermelons.

"Rome? Roman, are you there?" Tails asked.

Roman was silent as he had an epiphany. Resuming contact, Roman now said: "Meet us at the courtyard. Fast as possible."

"Why would I-" Tails began to ask, but then he fell silent, as if he had come to the same conclusion. Then, silent as a lamb, he whispered so that only Roman and he could hear: "Roth…"

"Roth…" Roman echoed in a similar tone. Then, without much choice, he sprinted towards the courtyard, Ashley in tow.

* * *

 _ **The Courtyard…**_

As he neared the courtyard, Roman could feel an almost palpable silence, so much so that he could almost touch it and hold it in his hand like a knife. He could see Tails on the other side of the entrance, also slowing down from sprinting. Their eyes met, and the two best friends beelined towards each other, meeting at the entrance before turning and heading outside, where they were met by Amy.

"Thank the Goddess you're here." Amy said, looking slightly dejected. "He… hasn't got long left."

Roman nodded thanks as he approached the area where the other members of Team Rose were stood, and Rotor was kneeling. Cream was standing a little to the right of the scene, clearly fighting back tears.

Rotor turned to see Roman, and got up, revealing the dying old man Roman knew to be Roth.

Roman's pace quickened until it was almost a sprint, and within seconds, he was at his former master's side. "Roth, I'm here."

The old man's head turned, and his face lit up at the sight of his former student. "Roman…" He said softly, far too softly to Roman's liking.

"Don't talk, Roth, just rest." Roman said, trying to fight the oncoming tears he knew would come.

By now, Ashley had joined the small crowd, and, now seeing what had happened, her hands went over her mouth in horror. "No…"

Roth reached up and took Roman by the arm, saying: "Roman… The Grand Inquisitor… Ye were right when ye said he knew ye."

Roman blinked in surprise. Leaning closer, he asked: "Who was it Roth?"

"It was-" Roth began, but a fit of coughing deterred him from doing so. His voice was failing, and he could now only whisper. "It was Elias." He managed to choke out.

Roman's eyes widened as a fist formed in his throat, throttling a gasp of shock or betrayal. Swallowing as hard as he could, Roman asked: "Anything else?"

"Aye." Roth forced out. "He's headed towards Mobotropolis. He told me he's gonna-" Another fit of coughing, only this time, Roth looked away from Roman and spat out a glob of black phlegm before he sank back to lying on the floor.

"Roth? Roth, stay with me!" Roman said, still fighting as hard as he could to repress the inevitable tears he could feel coming but was determined to hold off.

Roth looked up at Roman, and the vulpine Jedi saw a glint in Roth's eye, one similar to that of a father gazing upon his son, proud of the latter's achievements. "I'm proud of ye… I ever tell ye that?"

Roman nodded, as a single tear fell down his face.

"Well, since that's already been-" More coughing, followed by a wheezy groan. "Since I already said that, then… I just want to tell ye that ye were like the son I never had." Roth let out another wheeze, and now he turned his attention to Tails. "Tails…"

"I'm here, Roth." Tails said, trying to appear like he wasn't crying when he already was.

"Take care of Roman, y'hear?" Roth wheezed.

"I'll try." Tails' voice caught on the word try, and he felt another fresh batch of tears fall.

Roth turned to look up at Roman again, tightening his grip as he choked out: "Ye keep things up. I've done my part in his training… It's… It's up to ye now."

"I know." Roman choked.

Roth gave one last contented nod before he gave one last wheeze, and his grip on Roman's arm slackened, and then, Roth's arm sank to the floor.

And so it was that Cain Roth, Jedi Master and Clone Wars hero, died.

* * *

Roman's eyes closed as he finally let the tears fall. He let out one sob followed by another, until he finally allowed himself to start crying.

Ashley walked over and wrapped her arms around her boyfriend, feeling him shake with emotion. She could hardly blame him. Roth had been the father Roman never had a real chance to have before his real father had been killed in Eggman's coup.

Sally did the same with Tails, exuding the same motherly tenderness she always had with him, simply holding Tails there as the twin tailed kit shuddered with raw emotion.

After nearly ten minutes, Roman parted from Ashley's grip, his eyes bloodshot from crying. Turning to Roth's body, Roman said: "We need to get moving. We've said our goodbyes."

"What about the body?" Sally asked.

"Roth said that if he died in battle, he wanted his body burnt at the place he fell." Roman replied. "This place will be his tomb."

"Sounds just like something a warrior like him would want." Tails said.

"Should we do it now?" Sally asked.

Roman sighed. "Depends on whether your dad and the Royal Army can give us enough time to give Roth a proper funeral."

"What do you-" Sally began to ask before realisation dawned on her. "The Inquisitor… He's attacking Mobotropolis right now, isn't he?"

"According to Roth, it was _Grand_ Inquisitor." Roman said. "Though, we all know him by another name, you especially."

"What do you mean?" Sally asked.

"I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but the Grand Inquisitor is your brother. Elias." Roman said.

The moment she heard the name, Sally nearly collapsed in shock. "Y-you mean, _he's_ the one who killed Roth?"

Roman nodded. "He took off his mask when he stabbed Roth. Roth saw his face." Bowing his head, Roman said: "I should have realised it was him from the moment he called me 'old friend' during our duel a few days ago."

Sally looked at Roman. "Why didn't you tell me?"

"I didn't want to burden you with the possibility." Roman said. "You've been through enough trouble these past few years."

Sally sighed before turning to the others and saying: "Gather as much wood as you can. We're going to give Roth the send-off he deserves."

* * *

 _ **Later…**_

Everyone stood in respectful silence as Roman placed the torch on the funeral pyre, setting the pyre alight with a great conflagration.

Roth lay atop it, his arms placed neatly over his chest, as all the dead were usually placed during funerals.

Roman circled the pyre once, ensuring everything caught alight. Then he simply tossed the torch into the pyre and ignited his lightsaber, holding it in front of his face and mouthing: "I'll see you on the other side Roth. Just not yet."

Tails, who was nearby, shadowed Roman's movement, showing respect for the ways of the Jedi.

After a few minutes of simply watching and standing vigil over the site, Roman extinguished his lightsaber and said: "Thank you for your respect today. Roth may be gone, but his memory lives forever. In us. But we're not done. Not by a long shot. Our home now lies under siege, the Empire stopping at nothing to conquer a state which suffers because of me." He let the silence fall before continuing: "I would not have it so. The Grand Inquisitor, or should I say, the traitor Elias thinks we won't arrive in time. He doesn't know the Freedom Fighters half as well as he thinks. We have faced worse than him, and Mobius itself has faced worse than him. He thinks he faced the worst of us when he battled Roth, but he's wrong. He now has the full wrath of me coming his way, accompanied by the wrath of every single person here! And I swear, at the end of this day, only one of us, be it me, or him, is walking away alive. So swears Roman the Fox." He paused for a moment before he asked: "So who's with me?"

Everyone raised their hands.

Roman nodded. "As I thought." Turning to Sally, Roman asked: "Sally, since you're the superior out of all of us, would you care to do the honours?"

Sally nodded and called out: "Freedom Fighters, to the Sky Patrol!"

Everyone obeyed instantly, and sprinted to the private landing area where the Sky Patrol was.

Roman lingered a while, looking at the pyre atop which Roth lay, mentally saying: _I will avenge you Roth. I promise._

* * *

 **And now, to head to Mobotropolis, where the dramatic finale of this fanfic unfolds. The Siege of Artika Prison is over, and now, it is time for the Battle of Mobotropolis.**

 **Moving right along, please leave your reviews (NO FLAMES!), and May the Force be with you. Always.**

 **T-Rock14**


	16. Chapter 16: Battle of Mobotropolis

**Chapter 16: Battle of Mobotropolis**

 _ **The Sky Patrol, over Mobotropolis, 27**_ _ **th**_ _ **June 3239, 3:45 am**_

The doors leading into the main bridge slithered open as Roman entered the room. He was now clad in his signature attire, that being an all-black ensemble of a hooded leather vest jacket, similarly coloured tank top, black combat trousers, boots and gloves. Both his lightsaber and his DL-44 hung on his hip.

As he entered, he noticed the vast majority of the Freedom Fighters looking out of the window. Frowning, he walked over, his frown deepening as he saw what they were seeing.

Mobotropolis was burning. It was no longer the glittering, beautiful city that the Freedom Fighters knew it to be. For one, most of it was blazing in flames as the battle raged on and on.

Roman looked to his right and saw Sally standing nearby, clearly holding back tears. Stepping closer, Roman wrapped an arm around her shoulder. "Don't worry, Sally." He said. "Even though we won't be able to save Mobotropolis, we can still save your father, and everyone else we care about."

"I certainly hope so." Sally said, turning to Roman. "Got a plan?"

Roman nodded. "Nicole, bring up a holo-map of Mobotropolis, please." He requested.

As if by magic, a holographic map of Mobotropolis appeared, alongside the holographic lynx that everyone knew as Nicole.

"As you can no doubt see, the Empire has already managed to capture most of the city. From what I could see via the city cameras, they've established a Forward Operations Base in the city's main square." Nicole stated.

"This is going to be a long mission." Roman muttered. Walking up, he said: "Way I see things, we're going to need to split up. So, Sally, you'll take Ashley, Rouge, and Bunnie, along with Nicole, and head straight to Castle Acorn to secure your father. Then, you head to the Throne Room, since that's more fortified than any of the other rooms, and you keep him there until we get to you." He looked to the other Freedom Fighters and said: "Sonic, Tails, Shadow, Antoine, and Rotor, you're all with me. What our job is going to be is covering Team Rose to their mission start point, whose mission it will be to round up as many civilians as we can and get them the fuck out of the city. After we help them get started, we'll make our own way to Castle Acorn, and provide his Majesty with a chance of extraction."

"Where are we starting our mission, Mr Roman?" Cream asked.

"We'll take you as far as your neighbourhood, Cream. That's where you'll start, and where me and my team will leave you to get on with things."

"So you're planning on rescuing my mother before anyone else?" Cream asked excitedly.

"You know me, Cream. Friends take priority. Even if said friend is a popular target for my pranks." Roman said. "Call me selfish if you want, but that's just the way I roll."

Cream giggled and hugged Roman, saying: "Thanks, Mr Roman. I appreciate it."

"Glad you do." Roman said, just as he noticed something out of the corner of his eye. "And look who's decided to grace the city with his presence."

Everyone turned and scowled, even Cream. Moving in for a landing was a Lambda Class Shuttle. And they all knew who it was ferrying.

* * *

 _ **On the ground, Imperial Command Post…**_

The Lambda Class Shuttle's ramp lowered the moment it landed, allowing its passengers to exit the craft. Three of said individuals was the Grand Inquisitor, or as he was known to the Freedom Fighters, as Elias Acorn, The Female Inquisitor, who now went without a mask, and Colonel Okada, whom the Female Inquisitor had managed to rescue, alongside three other occupants of the prison. The rest they just left there.

One of the three rescued occupants of the prison was a certain middle aged anthropomorphic cat, missing a right arm and an eye, now wearing an Imperial Officer's uniform minus any form of rank plaque, and an eyepatch over his right eye.

The next to exit the shuttle, a massive anthropomorphic rhinoceros with an appearance only a mother could love, had to duck to do so, as he was very tall at seven-foot-five, and very heavily built. The only thing he was wearing were the orange prison trousers. Other than that, there was nothing.

Finally, another person exited the shuttle, this man still tall nonetheless, but nowhere near as muscular as the rhino. What the man lacked in musculature, he made up for in terms of bodily mass, being almost morbidly obese. He was not wearing a prison uniform at all, instead wearing something far more… flamboyant. It was a red turtleneck jacket with white trim, yellow cuffs and gold rectangular buttons, navy blue pince-nez glasses, grey hexagonal goggles on his head, black one-piece pants and boots with silver accents and buttons, and finally, white cuffless gloves.

Elias gazed at the flamboyantly dressed human with a look of indifference. "Enjoying being back in your own attire, Eggman?"

"Oh, yes!" Eggman replied. "That prison uniform was terribly uncomfortable!"

"I'm glad." Elias said as Colonel Okada walked up, having just spoken with one of the junior officers.

"According to the major over there, the battle is going well for us. We have already taken large sections of the city."

"Excellent." Elias said. "Have they managed to secure somewhere for a Forward Operations Base?"

"Yes sir. The main city square." Okada replied.

"Was this major in command of the entire operation before we arrived?"

"It certainly appears so." Okada answered.

"What was his name?" Elias asked.

"I think her name was Major Aryn." Okada replied.

"A woman? Even better." Elias replied. "Remind me to recommend him for a promotion. He deserves a place in the upper echelon of the command chain." Elias said.

"Will do, Grand Inquisitor." Okada said.

"Good." Elias said. Hearing a noise, he turned, and frowned in distaste.

Descending at a slow rate was the Sky Patrol, its mighty visage casting a large shadow.

Turning to Colonel Okada, Elias said: "Order some of the artillery to be redirected towards that craft and shoot it down."

"Yes sir." Okada asserted as he proceeded to give the order.

Soon, several artillery cannons were focusing their fire on the Sky Patrol, causing explosions everywhere upon the now beleaguered ship, which was now descending at a steeper vector then it had been before the artillery had started firing at it. Finally, one of the blasts from the artillery scored a direct hit on one of the Sky Patrol's engines, and another to the wing, which caused the Sky Patrol to list dangerously to the side.

Elias smiled as he imagined what was happening within. "Excellent work, Colonel." He said. "I might just recommend you for a promotion as well." At this, he watched as the Sky Patrol finally made landfall, causing the ground to cough up mud as it cushioned the ship's fall. After skidding a few metres, the mighty craft finally came to a stop near the Command Post.

Elias nodded approvingly before turning again to Colonel Okada. "Send a platoon of Stormtroopers inside to take out the survivors. I for one, will head to the Forward Operations Base, while you command from here."

"Yes, Inquisitor. Anyone you wish to accompany you?" Okada said.

"I'll bring my fellow Inquisitor and Eggman. Oh, and that Major Aryn girl. I wish to see her in person." Elias said.

"Yes sir." Colonel Okada said, and gave the necessary orders as a platoon of Stormtroopers headed towards the wreckage to search it.

"I'll be on my way now, Colonel. Send Major Aryn to meet me and the others at the Forward Operations Base." Elias said.

"Actually, she just told me she's on her way there already." Colonel Okada replied.

Elias smirked underneath his mask. "Even better."

* * *

 _ **Inside the Sky Patrol…**_

"Fuck…" Roman groaned as he dragged himself to his feet, looking around the bridge. Everyone was either knocked out or just about waking up. As he saw this, he heard a voice groan:

"Roman?"

Roman turned to see Ashley sitting up near where he'd been lying, looking up at him. "Ash, you alright?"

"I'll live." Ashley said as she reached out with her hand.

Roman gripped it, and helped his feline girlfriend up, instantly giving her a kiss. "At least we're all right." Roman said. Looking around, he shouted: "Everyone okay?"

"I'm good!" Came Sally's voice.

"Ditto for me!" Sonic shouted back.

"Ow…" Groaned Tails.

"Remind me never to fly with the Freedom Fighters again." Muttered Shadow.

"Ah'm okay." Bunnie said. "Antoine's still a little out of it."

"So's Big!" Called out Amy.

"Cream? You alright?" Roman called out.

"I'm okay." Cream said. "Miss Rouge is still knocked out."

Shaking the last of his unconsciousness from his mind, Roman said: "Looks like we need some more direct means of waking her up then." Walking up to where Cream had kindly propped Rouge up, Roman promptly knelt down in front of Rouge, and slapped her in the face.

"Roman! That's no way to treat a lady!" Cream scolded.

"It is when said lady is conked out when you don't want them to be." Roman replied as he then slapped Rouge again. "Wake up, you fucking SLB!"

Everyone laughed, as they knew what that meant.

After one more slap, Rouge's eyes fluttered open as she groaned. "Who was that bitch-slapping me?"

All fingers pointed to Roman.

Roman saw this and slouched. "You motherfuckers." He said, just as Rouge kicked up, catching him directly between the legs, in that particular spot.

Roman let out a pained, violated groan as he sank to his knees. Rouge was well known for her kicks, and she had just kicked Roman directly in his sacred area.

"Next time, think of other ways to wake me up." Rouge said as she got to her feet.

Roman only groaned in reply, much to the derision of some of the girls, aside from Ashley, who helped him up.

"Was that really necessary, Rouge?" Ashley demanded.

"What? He hit me, so I hit him back. Nothing else to it." Rouge replied.

"Don't think I'll ever be able to have kids after that one." Roman said, still bandy-legged after the kicks.

"I'm sure you will." Ashley encouraged, kissing him gently.

Before anything else could happen, Nicole sprang back to life: "Guys, we have a problem! An entire platoon of Stormtroopers is searching the ship right now! We have to move!"

"Sure thing Nicole." Roman said as he staggered to her. "Activate the self-destruct sequence. We can't allow the Sky Patrol to fall into enemy hands."

"He's right, Nicole." Rotor moaned as he peeled his head off of the floor on which he'd been sprawled after being thrown out of the Captain's chair. "Activate the self-destruct. I won't have the Empire benefitting from _my_ work."

"Very well." Nicole said as she temporarily disappeared, before reappearing again seconds later. "Self-destruct activated. We have ninety seconds to vacate the vessel."

"Then what the fuck are we waiting for? Move!" Roman said as he turned to walk out of the door, quickly looking from side to side to check if any Stormtroopers were nearby, like Nicole had said, and stepped out into the corridor, ushering everyone out before backing away and following them. Within a few seconds, he and the Freedom Fighters had utilised an emergency exit route Roman had asked Rotor to install, just in case. Once out, it was a case of 'get as far away from the crash site as possible.'

Within seconds of them clearing the blast zone, the Sky Patrol exploded in a terrific conflagration of fire and destruction, sending debris everywhere.

Sally stepped next to Roman, and asked: "What now?"

"We stick to the plan." Roman said, motioning to an entrance into the sewers. "We'll enter the city through there. Let's move."

* * *

 _ **Imperial Forward Operations Base, Acorn Square, 4:30 am**_

Elias stepped off of the Troop Transport that had ferried him, The Female Inquisitor, and Dr Eggman to the FOB to find Major Aryn waiting.

"Reporting for duty sir." Major Aryn said, in a strong Coruscanti accent.

"At ease, Major." Elias said, taking the chance to study the major.

She was an averagely heighted woman standing at about five-ten in her early twenties, with chestnut brown hair pinned up, and deep blue eyes. She was wearing the average Imperial Officer Uniform, greyish blue in colour, which hugged her figure considerably, from the trousers up to the tunic she was wearing. At her hip was a blaster pistol.

Elias finished his studying of her with a thought of how beautiful she looked. Then he forced that down. He had no time for relationships. He quickly asked: "How goes things, Major?"

"Well, Grand Inquisitor." Aryn replied. "We're currently pushing the enemy back, but we're experiencing fierce resistance from the Royal Army. They're putting up quite the fight."

"As is to be expected. I would not be surprised if we suffer heavy casualties." Elias said. Turning to Eggman, Elias asked: "Are your Egg-Armies on the way?"

"They are." Eggman replied. "I took the chance to contact them whilst on the journey here."

"Excellent." Elias said. "Their E.T.A?"

"About fifteen minutes." Eggman said.

"Even better." Elias replied. Turning to Major Aryn, Elias said: "Order the troops back Major."

"For what purpose?" Aryn asked.

"We will wait for our comrades from Eggman's ilk to arrive, and _then_ we will push forward. The bolstered ranks should be more than enough to push the enemy back decisively." Elias said.

"But won't that give the enemy a chance to counter-attack?" The Female Inquisitor asked, injecting herself into the conversation.

"Doubtful." Elias said. "Remember, I once trained with those men and women defending this city from us. They will not take the chance until they are sure we are falling back, for some reason or other. Fifteen minutes is time enough for them to wait. And as they step from their cover, _that,_ is when we shall strike!" As if to prove his point he hammered his right fist into his left palm.

"I agree with the Grand Inquisitor." Major Aryn said. Turning to another officer, Aryn said: "Order the troops back, Commander. And do not send them back into the field until after reinforcements arrive."

"Yes, Major." The commander affirmed as he proceeded to give the orders.

Elias watched this with a keen smile. Things were going well. Very well indeed.

* * *

 _ **Mobotropolis Market District, about the same time…**_

Roman jumped down from the overturned speeder he'd been standing on just then to survey the area around them, the street showing heavy signs of artillery strikes, but furthermore, signs of the heavy fighting that had taken place between the Imperial Stormtroopers and Acorn Royal Army Soldiers. Dead soldiers of either side lay all over the street they were walking down, many soldiers looking as if they had been repeatedly shot. It was unknown to them if said men had been repeatedly shot whilst alive or dead, but it still played at them like a visage of the Grim Reaper, a creature many Mobians associated with death.

However, the dead soldiers weren't the only corpses lining the streets. Dead civilians littered the streets as well.

Team Rose, especially Cream, all fought down the urge to start shaking as they saw the casualties, all sprawled across every area of the street amongst the debris and the rubble that also covered the street. Around them were wrecks of speeders, some completely burnt out, others still on fire. Some had even been sent flying, crushing anyone unfortunate enough to have a destroyed speeder land on them.

But the most heart-wrenching sight was that of a small family of raccoons, a mother and a father, and two young children. The father looked as if he had died shielding all of them, and lay on his front over the mother. The two young children were a little further away, as if they had tried to run before both were shot in the back. The mother was propped up against the wall, holding another child, this one just a baby, in her arms. Both looked like they'd been shot. The baby girl's eyes were closed, but the mother's eyes were wide open, staring at the passing Freedom Fighters, as if she were asking: _Where were you when we needed you the most?_

Amy walked up to the mother and reached out, closing the mother's eyes, silently praying for her.

Cream looked around bewilderedly. "What monster would do such a thing?"

"The monster you ask about," Roman replied darkly, "is war. It doesn't think, nor feel. All it does is make those that can't defend themselves suffer."

"That's a depressing thought." Shadow said bluntly.

"It's the truth, and you can't really talk, Shadow. You've said plenty of depressing things in the time we've known you." Roman said.

"Ain't that the truth?" Sonic asked rhetorically as he walked past Shadow.

"Anyways, enough of that, we need to go." Roman said.

"Agreed." Sonic said as he followed Roman, along with the other Freedom Fighters.

* * *

 _ **With Sally and her team…**_

With a final grunt of frustration, Sally drew her right-hand ring-blade out of the Stormtrooper Commander that commanded the platoon she and her team had just encountered.

Beside her, Ashley shot another Stormtrooper in the face, just as Rouge caused a Stormtrooper's neck to snap as she kicked it so hard, she made the trooper's head perform a one-hundred and eighty degree turn.

Bunnie had done the same as Rouge, as her cybernetic limbs were like a battering ram, caving in many an Imperial Stormtrooper's breastplate.

Sally looked over the carnage, and nodded. "That's certainly a start."

"It sure is, Sally-Girl." Bunnie said.

Sally nodded before surveying the surrounding area, sighing at the effects the street they were using had suffered as a result of the wanton destruction the battle that even now was being fought for her city. A battle she knew already was lost. But she knew that the Acorn Royal Army would not give up so easily. And although she had not told Roman this, but she was still hoping that somehow, the tide could be turned, and Mobius, once again, would defy the odds being stacked against them, as they had been in the past, and rid the planet of the Imperial invaders. But the rest of her somehow knew the battle was lost already. Mobotropolis would be taken, and everyone that could would be forced to flee. Luckily, Amy and Team Rose would handle that, after Roman and his team had helped them get started by rescuing the inhabitants of Cream's neighbourhood, especially her mother.

Ashley looked about and said: "We'd better keep moving. There's no doubt in my mind that any other Stormtrooper with half a mind would have heard that."

"Ah agree wit' Ash." Bunnie said. "We'd better keep movin'."

Sally nodded and the foursome started jogging towards Castle Acorn. They didn't get far before another Stormtrooper contingent spotted them, this time, it was a squad of Stormtroopers, eight in number.

"What the-" The sergeant in command spluttered. "Open fire!"

Sally beat them to the punch, quickly drawing her blaster pistol, an LL-30, and shooting the Sergeant dead centre in the chest.

Ashley quickly drew her DL-18 and rapidly plugged two Stormtroopers in the chest, leaving five, who now rallied and returned fire.

Bunnie ducked the blaster shots, activating her built in arm blaster, which she used to shoot two Stormtroopers, leaving large smoking holes in them.

Rouge used her flying to leap up, and divebomb the nearest Stormtrooper, kicking him violently in the face. So violently in fact, that it once again snapped the trooper's neck.

Sally and Ashley took care of the other two, both taking one out each.

Once the business was done, Sally and Ashley holstered their pistols, Bunnie retracted her arm blaster, and Rouge simply looked at them expectantly.

"So now we're taking a break?" Rouge said.

"No, we're just catching our breath." Sally replied, exhaling. Rolling her shoulders, she nodded. "Let's move."

* * *

 _ **Imperial Forward Operations Base, 5:15 am**_

"They're here." Eggman said to Elias.

Elias turned to see the Egg-Army troops arriving in droves, the people at their head being Egg-Boss Axel the Water Buffalo of the Efrika Egg Army, and Lord Mordred Hood the Snake of the Avalon Egg-Army. Both Egg Bosses came up and saluted, both saying:

"Reporting for duty, Grand Inquisitor."

"At ease you two." Elias said. Looking over the Egg-Army, Elias asked: "What is your troops' combined strength?"

"Three-hundred of our men at arms, Grand Inquisitor." Eggman said.

"Excellent. They will be more than sufficient." Elias said. Turning to Major Aryn, Elias commanded: "Send a message to Colonel Okada, and tell him that I want an artillery strike on the enemy positions."

"Will do, Grand Inquisitor." Major Aryn said. Activating her com-link, she said: "Colonel, this is Major Aryn. The Grand Inquisitor requires an artillery strike at these coordinates." At this, she forwarded the coordinates to Okada.

"Coordinates received, Major." Okada said. "Preparing to fire."

Within minutes of the order being given, the sound of renewed artillery strikes filled the air, as the Imperial's heavy cannons began to bombard the enemy positions with heavy fire, each one striking them like a sledgehammer.

A matter of minutes later, all sounds of artillery ceased. And all there was, was silence.

"And now," Elias said, drawing his lightsaber, "to renew the battle."

* * *

 _ **With Roman, his team, and Team Rose, at the same time…**_

"Looks like the battle's started again." Roman said as he heard the sounds of distant blaster fire.

"That's going to make things easier." Sonic said sarcastically. _"Not."_

"I see where you're coming from." Roman said. "But nobody said this mission would be easy."

"This mission _isn't_ easy." Amy said. "I think the majority of us here know that now. Aside from Big of course."

"What?" Big asked, sounding half asleep, as usual.

"Never mind." Amy said, continuing to trudge on.

Roman smirked at this. Conversations such as this had become commonplace since their mission had started. He suddenly sensed something coming, instantly hissing: "Get down!"

All of them people involved obliged, some taking cover, others playing dead, just as an entire platoon of Stormtroopers trudged past.

"I don't get it." said one Stormtrooper. "The assault's started again, so why aren't we at the front lines?"

"Stow it, Private." The Lieutenant in command snapped. "We're here to make sure there's no stragglers. They can still cause a lot of damage from behind the scenes, especially if they're soldiers."

Roman, who they had already passed, waited for the last few troopers to pass, and then got to his feet, activating his lightsaber.

"What the? Ambush!" The Lieutenant said, just as Roman cut down the nearest trooper to him. "It's one of the Jedi! Take him out!"

At this, Tails leaped from cover, activating his lightsabers and standing side by side with Roman.

"Another one?" The Lieutenant said. "Uh, maybe it would have been a good idea to disobey orders for once."

At this, Roman and Tails attacked, while the other members of the Freedom Fighters joined in.

Roman spun his lightsaber and opened the throat of one of the Stormtroopers before quickly cutting a trench into the torso of a second. A third tried shooting him from afar, but a blaster bolt caught him between the eyes before he could. Roman turned to see Antoine flash him an 'A-Ok' sign. Roman reciprocated the gesture, just as another trooper tried to shoot him. Sensing the danger, Roman turned and slashed upwards, cutting the trooper's blaster in two, and followed the attack up by slashing the trooper from shoulder to hip. Using the momentum from that, he drove his lightsaber through the chest of a sixth trooper.

In seconds, the fight was over.

Roman switched off his lightsaber and hooked it back onto his belt, sighing as he watched Tails finish off his last Stormtrooper, and then do the same.

"That felt good." Amy said, leaning her now bloodstained hammer over her shoulder. "Especially after what we saw earlier."

Roman nodded agreement, as he motioned with his hand. "We're close to Cream's neighbourhood. Let's double time it, people!" At this, he sprinted off, followed suit by the others.

* * *

 _ **With Sally and her team…**_

"Alright, ladies, let's take a short break from our mission." Sally said.

"Are you sure we should do that? From what Ah can hear of the battle, it sure looks like the Empire are gettin' real close to Castle Acorn." Bunnie said.

"They'll hold a little longer." Sally said, sitting down. "Plus, we could use the time to do a little count of what weapons we have."

"The Princess raises a strong point." Rouge added as she sat down as well, pulling out some lipstick and a portable mirror.

"Seriously?" Ashley said as she sat down as well. "We're doing a count of our weapons, and you're trying to make yourself look good?"

"Why not?" Rouge added. "If we're going in to rescue Sally's old man, then at least I can look good doing it."

The feline G.U.N agent sighed. "Well, we're doing this for weapons. You can further beautify yourself later."

"Hon, I don't need weapons like you do. You've seen what I can do. Does that constitute the requirement for a weapon?" Rouge asked arrogantly.

"Let me just say that one day, you'll face an opponent that you won't be able to defeat with just those kicks of yours." Ashley warned. "One day, you'll need a weapon."

"That's as maybe. But right now, I don't." Rouge said.

Ashley sighed as she drew her blaster and placed it on the ground next to her, and then picked out her knife. When she had taken those out, she took out the power packs for her blaster, and counted how many she had for it. "Three power packs." She said to herself.

Sally was just checking her ring-blades worked when Nicole came to life, saying:

"Sally, I'm receiving an oncoming call. Want to accept?" Nicole asked.

"Sure thing, Nicole. Patch me through." Sally answered.

Instantly, a certain voice was heard. "Sally? Are you there?"

Sally recognised the voice immediately. "Dad?"

"Thank heavens you're alive!" King Acorn rejoiced. "I had feared the worst when I saw the Sky Patrol get shot down."

"Have more faith, Daddy." Sally said. "How are things?"

"They are getting worse by the minute. Our forces are steadily being pushed back by the Imperials. Is there anyone with you?"

"Yes." Sally replied. "I have Ashley, Bunnie, and Rouge with me. We're on our way to secure you until Roman and his team arrive to help with extracting us."

"Where is Roman now?" King Acorn asked.

"Currently escorting Team Rose to Cream's neighbourhood." Sally answered. "From there, they'll separate, and Team Rose will proceed to try and round up as many civilians as they can before sneaking out of the city via the sewers, and then they'll wait for extraction to Angel Island. Roman and his team will then make their way to us, and then we'll get you and anyone else we can get out to Angel Island as well."

"Excellent plan. How far are you from the castle?" King Acorn inquired.

"About a block away. Just sit tight, dad. We're almost there." Sally responded.

"Very well. I shall see you then." King Acorn said as he cut the comm.

Sally pocketed Nicole before getting up, grabbing her weapons. "Okay girls, break's over. Let's get back to work."

* * *

 _ **With Roman, his team, and Team Rose, Cream's neighbourhood, 5:30 pm**_

Roman and his team hugged the wall of the nearest house, which just so happened to be Cream's house. So while Team Rose had headed in through the back door, Roman and his team had hidden around the corner from the rest of the troopers. Contacting Amy, Roman said: "Amy, what do you see?"

"I see an entire platoon, several troop transports, and an Imperial Walker." Amy replied.

"What size? Big or small?" Roman asked.

"Small, thankfully." Amy replied. "No sign of Vanilla, though."

Roman turned to Tails, nudged him, and pointed upwards, signifying Roman's wish for Tails to head on up to the roof of the house.

Tails nodded, and quietly spun his namesakes, ascending to the roof, where he quickly brandished his sniper.

"You got a bead on her?" Roman asked.

"Wait a second…" Tails whispered, before after a few more seconds, he said: "Found her. Close to the centre of the circle of prisoners, of which I count about fifteen. I can see the rest are dead."

"Awesome job, Tails. Now it's time to wait for the cavalry." Roman said.

As if on cue, a gruff voice called out on Roman's comm: "Roman, what took you so long?"

"Knuckles? You're here already?" Roman asked.

"Sure am. Me _and_ the Chaotix." Knuckles replied. "Where are you?"

"Right hand wall of Vanilla's house. Tails and Team Rose have eyes on. Do you have a bead on your target?"

"What is our target?" Knuckles asked a little irritably.

"The walker." Roman said. "I need you to commandeer that walker. It's effectively our only chance."

"Sounds good to me." Knuckles said. "Let's do it."

"Glad you agree." Roman replied with a smirk. "Get down to it, make a little noise. Maybe blow up one of the troop transports or something."

"Will do." Knuckles replied as he cut the chatter.

Roman waited for a few seconds before he heard Tails whisper:

"I got eyes on. Knuckles and Espio are headed up onto the troop transport nearest to the walker. Looks like they're going to jump." Tails said. After a few more tense seconds, Tails added: "They're on top. Clearly headed on in."

After about half a minute, Roman heard the sound of the walker's cannons firing, and the roar of something exploding. Taking a deep breath, he ignited his lightsaber, and rounded the corner, charging into combat.

The first Stormtrooper that saw him saw him too late, as Roman's lightsaber cut the trooper down before he could react.

The next trooper though, saw him in within seconds of the first trooper falling to Roman's blade. "It's one of the Jedi! Blast him!" the trooper managed to saw before Roman ran him through.

Turning away from that kill, Roman deflected several blaster bolts, redirecting them all at the Stormtrooper that fired them. He saw Vanilla, who saw him, and began to make his way towards her, cutting into the torso of another trooper that got in his way, and cutting down another, and another, and another, until he finally reached Vanilla.

"You took your time." Vanilla said as she stood up. Her dress was a little torn and ragged, but not enough to cause her to lose any modesty.

"A simple 'thank you for saving my ass without dying' would be nice." Roman replied.

Vanilla chuckled. "Fine. Thank you Roman, for… Saving my life without dying."

Roman laughed. "That's more like it. Though you were supposed to say 'ass' instead of 'life'." Roman replied.

"I don't cuss; unlike some of your other female friends, I am a proper lady, and so do not cuss." Vanilla said.

Roman raised an eyebrow. "So what you're saying is that Sally isn't a proper lady? She can when she needs to be, but when it comes to situations like this, she doesn't. Capiche?"

"Very well." Vanilla said, just as she noticed Cream sprinting towards her. "Cream!" Vanilla called out.

"Mother!" Cream shouted as she almost leaped into her mother's arms. "Are you alright?"

"I'm fine dear, but how about you? You have been in several combat situations since you left home, have you not?" Vanilla inquired.

"Only in a medical capacity, Mother." Cream replied. "I was never at any significant risk until the final attack on Artika a few hours ago, and now." She hugged her mother again and added: "The main thing is that you're okay, and you're safe."

Vanilla nodded, smiling gently, before she saw a Stormtrooper, missing the lower half of his left leg but sitting up, raise his blaster, aiming it at Roman. Her face became one of horror, and she roughly pushed Cream aside, and then did the same for Roman, just as the trooper fired one, two, and three shots. In mere moments, Vanilla felt three stabs of pain, one after the other. The first was to her abdomen, doubling her over. The second hit her left shoulder, causing her to stand up fully again, and the final bolt hit her in the chest, dead centre in the heart. Staggering back a few paces, hearing Cream's screams of anguish, Vanilla toppled to the floor.

Roman saw this happen, and then looked back at the Stormtrooper, getting to his feet, lightsaber raised, and his blood up as he approached.

The Stormtrooper, realising his predicament, fired several more shots.

Roman blocked all of these, and then some, finally closing with the Stormtrooper enough to cut the trooper's blaster in half, and then, with his own cry of anguish, beheaded the trooper with a mighty stroke, sending the head flying into the air. Watching the headless corpse finally fall to the floor, Roman switched off his lightsaber, hooked it onto his belt, and ran over to where Vanilla lay dying.

"…stay with me, Mother." Cream begged Vanilla, tears beginning to stream down her face.

Vanilla faced her daughter, smiling bravely. "Cream, even you must know that I can't be there for you for all your life." She said weakly. Reaching up, she found enough strength to pull herself up and give Cream a kiss on the cheek. "I love you." Vanilla managed to whisper, before her eyes closed, and her body went limp.

* * *

"Mother?! _Mother?!"_ Cream asked, before she finally caved in, easing her head onto her mother's bosom and crying long, hard sobs, soaking Vanilla's dress with her tears. A lump had formed in her throat, denying her the release of the grief-ridden cry she felt forming also.

Nearby, everyone was either crying or about to. Amy had also burst into tears, throwing her arms around a very surprised Shadow and burying her face into her chest as she cried similar sobs to Cream.

Big was watching also, crying as well.

It wasn't just the members of Team Rose and those in the neighbourhood that knew Cream that were crying. Sonic and Tails were embracing, both crying on the others' shoulder.

Antoine and Rotor were standing a little to the side, both shedding tears for Vanilla.

Knuckles and the Chaotix were also watching, Shade crying on Knuckles' shoulder, while the crimson coloured echidna put on a brave face, although he was secretly fighting tears of his own. The Chaotix behind him were crying almost as hard as Cream and Amy, so much so that it almost seemed comical.

But most of all, Roman was crying, his grief and guilt like tidal waves against his weakened emotional defences. Scooting over to Cream, he placed a hand on Cream's shoulder. "Cream…"

Cream turned to face Roman, and promptly latched onto him, crying hard on his shoulder.

Roman held her there, also crying, one hand on her back, and the other on her head, gently running his hands through her head fur. "Cream…" He said. "I'm… I'm _so_ sorry. If I'd only been a little faster-"

"It's not your fault." Cream whimpered as she let go. Her eyes were nearly bloodshot and puffy from so much crying. "She gave her life to save yours. I could never blame you for that, Rome." She managed a weak smile, despite her apparent grief.

Roman nodded and took her by both her shoulders, saying: "Cream… I promise you… No, I _swear_ to you, Elias _will_ pay for what he's done." To seal the deal, he took his knife, placed the sharp edge of the blade in his palm, and cut, gritting his teeth at the sharp pain. Balling his left hand, the one he had cut, into a fist, letting the blood seep through, Roman added: "I swear… On my _own_ blood."

Cream was a little startled by this gesture, but nodded, still crying. She hugged Roman again, before looking back over her mother's body, and beginning to cry again.

Roman stood up, and called out: "Amy!"

The sakura hedgehog turned to Roman, her eyes still tearful, as were the others. "Yes?"

"Your mission begins _now."_ Roman said. "Round up who you can, and then move out."

"What about Vanilla's body?" Amy asked.

Roman looked about him, saying: "Anybody got a blanket?"

Someone nodded, heading into their house and coming out several minutes later, carrying said blanket and handing it to Roman.

Roman took it in his hands, headed over to Vanilla's body, and draped the blanket over her corpse, but not before folding her hands over her abdomen. Turning to Big, Roman ordered: "Pick the body up. We can give her a proper funeral when we link up at Angel Island."

Big nodded, waddling over and picking up Vanilla's body bridal style.

Roman turned to where his team stood: Sonic, Shadow, Tails, Antoine, and Rotor. The Chaotix and Knuckles were also nearby. "We just lost a good friend." Roman said. "But her death is _not_ the end. The Jedi believed that death is merely a natural part of life, and as such, is part of the Force. While we _will_ mourn Vanilla's untimely passing, we _cannot_ let grief blind us to the task at hand. Vanilla wouldn't want her death to be the catalyst that leads to _our_ mission failing. I for one, will _not_ let that happen. I will either complete the mission, save the King, _and_ get us all to Angel Island, _or,_ by the Goddess _and_ the Force, I will die in the _fucking_ attempt!"

Everyone stared at him in shock. Roman's voice was like thunder, hammering away at them as if his voice were Thor, and his words Mjölnir.

Roman eyed everyone as he asked but a single question: "Who's with me?"

Every single Freedom Fighter raised his hand. "Good. Let's move."

"Wait!" Knuckles called out.

Roman and the others turned to him.

"While you were talking, I was discussing something with the Chaotix, and we decided that I would accompany you while the rest head back to the ship. The Emerald does need a pilot."

Roman smirked. The Emerald was Knuckles' ship, a beaten down G9 Rigger Freighter, not that different to the Twilight, a ship on which Roman had been a passenger on occasion. "The more, the merrier Knuckles."

Knuckles nodded before turning to Shade and sharing a passionate kiss with her. "I'll see you soon."

"You'd better." Shade said as she and the Chaotix left.

"So what now?" Shadow asked.

Roman pointed to the still intact Imperial Troop Transport, and said: "We take that to Castle Acorn, and then we complete the job. "Got it?"

"Got it." Everyone affirmed.

"Awesome. Tails, Antoine, you'll take the controls, and the rest of us will just sit tight. Let's move!"

At this, they all headed to the troop transport, Castle Acorn looming in the distance.

* * *

 _ **With Sally and her team, at about the same time…**_

The sounds of battle had grown louder and louder the closer Sally and her team had gotten to Castle Acorn.

"Are you sure this is a good idea, Sally-Girl?" Bunnie asked. "Things are lookin' pretty hot right now around there."

"Bunnie's got a point, Sally." Ashley added. "If we go through here, we could get chewed up."

Sally sighed. "It's a risk we're going to need to take, ladies." She said. "Now, let's move!" At this, she broke into a sprint.

Reluctantly, the other three followed her, also sprinting. Soon, blaster bolts began cascading past them as they ran up to the main bridge that led to Castle Acorn, which the remaining soldiers of the Royal Army division that protected Mobotropolis, clearly a company of them, were taking cover behind sandbags, taking pot-shots at the advancing troops, who were subjecting them to an endless hail of blaster fire, pausing only to reload or wait for their weapon to cool down.

Sally waited for such a time, before full-on bolting to the soldiers, alongside her team.

The officer in charge noticed them, especially Sally, and demanded: "Princess, what in Aurora's name are you doing here?"

"We were headed here already." Sally said. "We're here to hold the King until our other team arrives to help pick him up."

The officer nodded, calling over two soldiers. "Provide covering fire for the Princess and her team until she can get inside the castle walls. Move!"

The two soldiers saluted and beckoned Sally and the others to come with, as they laid down a steady stream of fire, covering Sally and co.

At least until one of them fell, several blaster wounds in his abdomen. The other soldier carried on, backing off ever so slightly, until one single blaster bolt pierced his head. His head snapped back as the back of his cranium exploded, showering everything in its vicinity with several things: Blood, bone, and cranial matter, everywhere.

None of it touched the girls however, and so they laid down covering fire of their own, as they quickly turned, sprinting towards Castle Acorn, their mission one step closer to completion.

* * *

 **Now, who out of all those reading this: Who expected Vanilla to die? I suspect none of you did, but if you did, well done.**

 **Otherwise, please leave your reviews (NO FLAMES!), and May the Force be with you. Always.**

 **T-Rock14**


	17. Chapter 17: Shattered Hearts

**Chapter 17: Shattered Hearts**

 _ **Castle Acorn…**_

"Dad!" Sally called out as she rushed to her father, leaping into his arms

"Sally! Thank heavens you're still alive! After the Sky Patrol was shot down, I had feared the worst." King Acorn said.

"Well, thankfully, the worst hasn't come for me yet." Sally said, a smile crossing her face.

The King nodded before asking: "Have you heard anything from Roman and his men?"

"No. They've kept to radio silence ever since the mission began in order to mask our presence to the Empire." Sally replied.

"Good, good." King Acorn said. "What of Team Rose? Are they alright?"

"They are. I only recently got contacted by Amy to report she had started evacuating the city. Though she did sound a little upset over something. When I asked, she said it was nothing and ended the talk."

"Have you tried contacting Roman?" King Acorn asked.

"I'll do it." Ashley said, contacting Roman: "Roman, this is Ashley. How are things on your front?"

"Heavy." Roman said. "We're about two thirds of the way to Castle Acorn. You there?"

"Yes, we are." Ashley replied.

"Awesome. Here's Phase Two of the plan: Get the King to the Throne Room and hold him there until we arrive. Get everything you can use as cover together and hold out. Once me and the others arrive, we can take the secret passage out of the castle. Understood?"

"Understood Roman." Ashley said. "Tiny question: Sally recently called Amy, and Amy sounded upset. Anything you saw that may have caused that?"

"Unfortunately, yes. We managed to reach Cream's neighbourhood and clear it of Imperials, but Vanilla was killed in the fighting."

Ashley's eyes widened. "No…" She denied, as tears came to her cheeks.

"How did it happen?" Sally asked, shocked to no certain belief.

"She gave her life to save mine. A Stormtrooper was about to plug me, but Vanilla pushed me out of the way so that she'd take the hit instead. Her wounds were too great to be treated." Roman said gravely.

Everyone in the room blinked back tears. Vanilla had been a friend to them all, and to lose her was a considerable blow.

"That's all there is to it." Roman said. "I'll be there as soon as I can. Roman out."

And silence.

Until Ashley broke it by saying: "We'd better get the King to the Throne Room. I have a nasty feeling that the Grand Inquisitor will be here soon, and we all likely know why he's here."

Sally nodded. "Ashley's right. We can mourn the dead later." Turning to her father, Sally said: "Dad, we need to get to the Throne Room now."

"I agree, but, how do you know the Grand Inquisitor's reason for coming here?" King Acorn inquired.

"Isn't it obvious?" Rouge butted in. "He wants to come here to kill you and secure this planet for the Empire. Simple as that."

King Acorn frowned. "While I have tolerated most of your lies in the past, Miss Rouge, I simply cannot tolerate this one. There is more to the Grand Inquisitor's intentions here, isn't there?"

Rouge looked to Sally and shrugged.

Sally sighed as she said: "You may want to sit down for this, Dad. What I'm about to tell you is about as shocking as can be."

"I'll stand, thank you." King Acorn said resolutely.

"Suit yourself, old man." Rouge said.

"Rouge!" Sally scolded. Turning back to the King, Sally said. "We know the Grand Inquisitor's real identity, Dad. Roth said so as he died."

"Well, who is this 'Inquisitor' then?" King Acorn asked.

Sally grimaced, as she said: "It pains me to tell you this, but the Grand Inquisitor is none other than Elias."

* * *

At the mere mention of that name, King Acorn's face fell into one of shock. He stumbled slightly, but kept his composure as his face grew grim. "I feared that such a thing would happen." King Acorn said gravely.

"What do you mean, Sire?" Ashley asked.

"After he was rejected by the Jedi and deemed too old to be trained, Elias developed a grudge against the Jedi. A major grudge, if I do say so. He grew ever bitter whenever the Jedi were mentioned, and I recall the anger at Roman when Roman was accepted by the Jedi and he was not."

"That part I know. Elias held it against Roman for the whole of Elias' time as a Freedom Fighter before he left." Sally said.

"Precisely. So I believe that now he is a servant of the Dark Side, he likely wishes to take his revenge." King Acorn said. He made to say more, but then, Nicole butted in, saying in a panicked tone:

"Guys, we need to head into the Throne Room _now!_ The enemy has managed to breach the outer defences, and I'm unsure as to how long the Royal Guard will hold out."

"Alright, Nicole. Dad, everyone, get to the Throne Room!" Sally shouted.

* * *

 _ **Outside, Courtyard…**_

Elias strode into full view like an evil spirit setting foot in a sacred place. Instantly igniting his lightsaber, The Grand Inquisitor strode forth, swatting aside blaster bolts as if they were flies before he closed with the Royal Guard, instantly cutting down one of them with a swift cut to the throat. The second to fall at his hands toppled to the floor minus their head. Thirdly, he used the Force to choke one of them, and clench his fist, which in turn, crushed the guard's windpipe and killed him. A forth tried engaging him with his sword, but Elias was ready, sidestepping the forward thrust the guard made, elbowing the guard sharply in the face, and drove his lightsaber through the guard's chest, as he had done with the old man Cain Roth only hours earlier. Tearing the blade free, he surveyed the area.

Most of the Royal Guard lay dead, sprawled on the floor. Those that had not been killed, and were either wounded or had been forced to surrender, were now being rounded up and forced to sit down in a circle.

Elias turned to Major Aryn, who was present, and said: "See to it that these men and women are treated fairly. They are my people after all."

"You mean, you're one of us? A Mobian?" Said one of the shocked guards.

Elias chuckled. "Oh, it's so much more than that." At this, he took off his mask, shocking everyone. "I used to command you." Elias said.

"Prince Elias? You're one of _them?"_ The same guard asked, an almost elderly man Elias vaguely remembered as one of his father's longest serving guards before Eggman's revolt.

"I am. You've gotten much older since I last saw you." Elias said as he moved closer.

"Something far worse has clearly happened to you, if it's caused you to dishonour your father this way." The guard retorted.

"Worse?" Elias asked. _"Worse?!_ Old man, I am far more powerful than you can possibly imagine right now. Way I see it, I've only gotten better with age. Just like a fine wine."

The guard spat on the floor. "You can call it what you want, but it still does not mask the depths of your treason." The guard snarled. "Your father loved you, and _this_ is how you repay that?! By joining one of his enemies and leading an army against him?" You disgust me."

"I'm glad I do." Elias replied blankly as he turned his back on the guard. "Because the love I once held for my father was lost when he ruined my dream of becoming a Jedi." With this, his lightsaber burst back to life, and with a swift movement, the guard's headless corpse toppled to the floor, the head rolling next to it.

Elias extinguished his lightsaber and hooked it on his belt, saying to Major Aryn: "Belay my recent order. They're to be treated _exactly_ the same as the civilians." At this, he picked his mask back up and put it back on, just as a voice behind him said:

"Nicely handled. You clearly know when to enforce things."

Elias turned to see Frederick standing there, his massive enforcer Argo the Rhinoceros standing right next to him. "I'm glad you enjoy my ways of doing things." Elias said. "Any particular reason why you did not remain at the Command Post as I requested?"

"I came to deliver a message from Colonel Okada. He's had reports that Roman the Fox and several of the Freedom Fighters are headed this way. I'm sure you understand why I decided to bring the message." Frederick replied.

Elias nodded. "Your vendetta against Roman is well known to me. Thankfully, I have someone who can delay or even rid us both of our vulpine friend. Someone I believe is known to you."

"And who might that be?" Frederick asked, until said person appeared from thin air right next to Elias, making Frederick smile. "Alec. So good to see you again."

"I'm thankful for the opportunity to work for you again, Mr Frederick." The human assassin said.

* * *

 _ **Not too far away, Two blocks from Castle Acorn…**_

Roman front-flipped over the Imperial blockade and landed without a problem, instantly cutting down two Stormtroopers with a single swipe.

The Imperial Troop Transport he and his team had been using now lay on its side behind him and the others, the result of a Stormtrooper firing on it with a rocket launcher. Moving on from the troopers he'd just killed, he downed a third with a deft stroke to the trooper's torso, as he had done the first two. A fourth stepped back a little, firing at the vulpine Jedi as he did. But he had failed to notice the other vulpine behind, who was also armed with the weapon of a Jedi. But this one had two such weapons, and two tails.

Tails instantly cut down the trooper firing on Roman, and promptly focused on his section, cutting down a second and third Stormtrooper simultaneously, and bisecting a fourth Stormtrooper at the waist with both lightsabers. The fifth Stormtrooper backed up a little, but Tails was swifter, throwing his shoto at the Stormtrooper, pinning the Stormtrooper to the wall behind him. Retrieving his shoto, Tails turned to see Roman enjoying similar success, smiling as he watched Roman cut down the trooper he'd had left. Turning, Tails triangulated sixty Stormtroopers charging their way, blasters blazing.

Behind Roman and Tails, the other Freedom Fighters took positions, opening fire at the oncoming troopers, some of whom instantly crumpled under the counterattack.

Roman and Tails' eyes met, and they nodded, spinning their lightsabers as they closed with the enemy. From there, their minds became in sync, both Jedi fighting as if they were one, performing synchronised attacks on the Stormtroopers until there were no Stormtroopers left to cut down.

Switching off their lightsabers, Roman and Tails hooked them onto their belts before joining with Sonic and the others.

"That was first class, guys." Knuckles remarked as he bumped knuckles with Roman and Tails.

"That's what you get when you're a master and an apprentice with a good friendship like me and Tails do." Roman said. Turning to face the Castle, Roman said: "Okay boys. On we merrily stumble."

At this, the thirteen Mobians continued their journey towards Castle Acorn.

* * *

 _ **Another few blocks away, With Team Rose…**_

Amy rolled under the oncoming blasts and swung her hammer, feeling the jolt in her joints as the weapon connected with a Stormtrooper, sending the white clad soldier flying into the wall. By now, she and Team Rose had gathered about thirty survivors. She had obeyed Roman's orders to only rescue those for whom rescue was still possible, and so had not attempted to rescue those under the guard of a heavy concentration of Stormtroopers. Much to her and Team Rose's luck, they had among them several Acorn Royal Army soldiers, who were fighting alongside them.

One such soldier kicked a Stormtrooper next to Amy down and fired two bolts into the trooper's head.

Amy recoiled at this. "Geez, Captain, no need to be so overzealous!" She said.

"These bastards murdered my wife, Miss Rose. I'm not leaving any of them alive." The Captain, a dark furred ferret, snapped back at her.

Amy sighed as she motioned for the party to follow. They were currently searching for a means to enter the sewers, through which they would evacuate the city. She looked behind her to see Cream and Big at the rear of the group, the latter carrying the dead body of Vanilla. She had noticed that every now and then, Cream would look up at her mother's body and shed a tear or two. Amy did the same. Even after nearly two hours, Amy couldn't believe Vanilla was gone. Now Amy would never get to taste Vanilla's cooking or baking again. Neither would she get to talk to Vanilla again, or have the pleasure of running into Vanilla in the street while shopping and say hello.

She was driven from thought when she heard a shrill cry of:

"Wait!"

Amy turned in the direction of the cry to see a pretty young anthropomorphic wolf in her early to mid-twenties, with dark grey fur and green eyes. What really caught Amy's attention was the wolf's belly, which was swollen to no end, a dead-to-rights sign that the wolf was heavily pregnant. Turning to everyone, Amy motioned for them to stay put as she headed towards the wolf. "Are you hurt in any way? Is the-"

"My baby's fine, thank you." The wolf replied, showing some discomfort.

"That's good. What's your name?" Amy asked.

"Sasha." The wolf replied.

"Nice to meet you, Sasha, I'm Amy. As in Amy Rose."

"You're Amy Rose?" Sasha asked. Her face curled into a major grin as she said: "Oh my goodness, I am such a huge fan!"

Amy was surprised. "Well, that's certainly a good start. Come on. We'll get you and your baby somewhere safe."

"Thank you." Sasha said as she followed Amy, one hand pressed into her back to relieve the weight of her pregnancy.

One of the soldiers, a wolf like Sasha, recognised her, and ran to her, calling out: "Sasha!"

Sasha turned and her expression became relieved as she embraced the other wolf. "Rick! Thank goodness!"

"Your husband, I'm guessing." Amy said with some humour in her voice.

"No, he's my brother." Sasha said sadly. "My husband was killed when the attack started. I've been hiding from whoever the attackers are until now."

Amy frowned. "I'm sorry." Remembering where they were, she said: "Anyway, enough delays. We need to get back moving."

"I agree." The Captain said, walking up to Rick and Sasha. "Get back to position, lieutenant. Take your sister with you."

"Yes sir." Rick replied as he led Sasha to his position.

Amy nodded approvingly as she continued leading the group through the city, in search of a way out.

* * *

 _ **Castle Acorn Throne Room…**_

Sally wanted to stop pacing, but she found she could not. Not when the world she had known for years was going to hell outside the walls, and not when some of her closest friends, one of them her husband, were outside in the city, putting their lives on the line in order to take out as many of the enemy as they could, whilst also making their own way to Castle Acorn. She had sealed the doors leading in to the Throne Room, and the doors leading into the other parts of Castle Acorn. The only door she had not sealed was the secret door leading into a secret passageway that led out from Castle Acorn, one only a select few, including herself and her father, knew about.

King Acorn sat placidly on the throne, his face equally as grim as the faces of the others. Even though he had suspected things, he was still horrified at the thought of his only son wielding the Dark Side of the Force. It sickened the King to the core.

Ashley stood a little away from the two royals, her arms folded as she leaned against one of the pillars surrounding the mighty room she was in. She could still hear the sounds of battle raging outside the castle walls, a constant reminder that her boyfriend, the only person she had ever loved, was outside the castle, fighting to stay alive, and fighting to get back to her.

Bunnie sat on the steps leading up to the throne, her hands tented as she simply sat there, silently contemplating the future ahead. She remembered the first time she and her friends had been forced to flee Mobotropolis, fourteen years earlier. That time, she had been unable to flee under her own power. Now, she could. _But not without Antoine,_ she resolved.

Rouge was up near the ceiling, having found someplace comfortable to sit up there. She had been silent ever since they had entered the throne room, as she simply gazed down at the people below her: Sally pacing the room relentlessly, King Acorn sitting forlornly on his seat of power, her colleague Ashley leaning against the pillars, and Bunnie sitting on the steps leading up to the throne. Rouge had never felt so uncomfortable during a prolonged silence. She wondered whether she should descend from her perch and start up a conversation, but she doubted any of the girls or the King was in the mood for chitchat. Then again, neither was she, now she thought about it. But other than that, she missed Shadow. Ever since he and she had gotten together, things had been going nothing short of spectacular for her personally. But now she was waiting for him to return to her arms, whilst fighting a large army of Imperial Stormtroopers. Normally, Rouge had little doubt of her ebony lover's ability to overcome almost any odds, but with what she had seen from the Empire was enough to cast doubt on anyone's abilities, even those of one who named himself 'The Ultimate Life Form'."

She was driven from thought when she heard one of the girls' com-links down below start crackling, followed by a voice:

"Sally, it's Roman! We're just about outside the Castle grounds, but the courtyard's crawling with Stormtroopers. Things might just about get heavy." Came the voice of Roman.

Sally ceased her pacing and replied: "I read you, Roman. I'll get things ready."

"Wait until we've actually reached the Throne Room, Sal." Roman said. "Then we can focus on getting the fuck out of here. Got it?"

"Got it Rome." Sally replied.

"Good. We'll see you there. Roman out."

* * *

 _ **Outside the castle, Courtyard entrance…**_

Roman ended the comm and drew his pistol, his finger curling around the trigger and tensing it. Turning to his team, Roman whispered: "Anybody got a flash?"

"Oui. One." Antoine replied as he tossed Roman the explosive.

"Do you only bring one of everything?" Roman asked. "One sword, one of each grenade, one blaster with one bolt left in the cell-"

"I get eet." Antoine said.

Roman sighed as he prayed: _Please, let this work._ At this, he primed the flashbang, and tossed it within, hearing a loud bang followed by some pained cries. Shrugging, Roman jumped from cover and began shooting, one after the other.

The others soon followed, taking cover and shooting at the surrounding Stormtroopers, who weltered under the fierce surprise assault.

Within about a minute and a half, it was all over. All the Stormtroopers lay dead in the courtyard, all of them having suffered blaster wounds to various parts of their body.

Roman spun his blaster and blew out the smoke on his blaster before holstering it. Taking his lightsaber in his hands, Roman said: "A few more minutes, guys. Give it a few more minutes, and we'll be linking up with the others before you know it."

"Finally." Tails said. "Well, what are we waiting for? Let's go!" At this, he bounded up the steps into the castle.

Roman watched him go before he motioned forwards. "Okay, you heard Tails. Let's head inside." At this, they made to head inside, but not before several blaster bolts thudded into the floor near Roman.

"Everyone but you, Roman. Everyone but you." Came a voice.

Roman scowled and ignited his lightsaber. He hadn't heard that voice for six months. And he would have preferred for things to stay that way. "Alec."

As if on cue, Frederick the Cat's personal assassin materialised from the shadows, as if they had given birth to him. "That's right, Roman. I'm back."

The two enemies began to circle one another as Roman looked to Sonic and the others. "Head on inside and link up with Sally and the others. I'll meet you there."

"Provided I don't kill you first." Alec replied.

Sonic and the others obliged, and entered the castle, leaving Alec and Roman alone in the courtyard, still circling each other.

"I assume that since you're here, Frederick and that ugly-ass rhino Argo are here as well?" Roman inquired.

"You are correct." Alec said. "But they are attending other business within the castle, so unfortunately, they will not have the pleasure of watching me kill you."

"Funny. Knowing Frederick as I do, he'd likely double your pay to get a front row seat." Roman joked.

By now, the two had almost circled ninety degrees around the courtyard, with Roman now standing at the gates leading in to the courtyard, or out into the city, while Alec stood where Roman had been standing when the former had revealed his presence.

Roman noticed Alec's arm had some mechanical implants, and asked: "Love what you've done with your arm. Looks like some pretty high-end shit right there."

"Serving the Empire does have its perks." Alec said. "When I joined the Empire four months ago, I found that the damage you did to my arm was too bad for the injury to mend. So they were forced to amputate. Which, since I wasn't under anaesthetic, was not fun at all. Thankfully, now I have this: A fully operational mechanical prosthetic, which enables me to turn invisible whenever I want, and gives me a little extra punch."

"Sounds cool. But in terms of your original arm requiring amputation, well, sorry. Price you pay for threatening me and my friends." Roman replied, readying himself.

Alec scoffed. "Cute." With this, he drew his sword. "But that won't save your life."

"Then I dare you to come and try to take it from me!" Roman spat back before he and Alec charged one another. Their blades met in a shower of sparks.

* * *

 _ **Inside…**_

"Are you sure about leaving Roman out there without backup?" Tails asked. "I remember the last time he face Alec, and it wasn't pretty."

"Roman's fought and beat him once before." Sonic pointed out. "Now he's had six months, he's still in one piece, unlike the last time he fought Alec, at which time he had a stab wound to the gut, and, he must have learned from last time he and Alec fought."

"I hope you're right, Sonic." Tails said. "Because the last time-"

"Hold on." Knuckles interrupted as he sniffed the air. "Did someone make dookie on themselves and then piss themselves?"

"Um, no." Everyone said.

"Well, I'm sure my underwear is still clean, but I can still smell that." He, along with the other Freedom Fighters, soon heard something big, large, and angry roaring in the distance. "Though there is the possibility that whatever _that_ is could be the-" He never finished his sentence, as something, big, large, and unbearably smelly ploughed into him at full speed.

"Whoa!" Everyone exclaimed, while also holding their noses.

"It's okay!" Knuckles said, managing somehow to get the mass currently snorting on top of him off of him, and getting to his feet. "You guys go on. I'll deal with this big stinking bozo."

At this, the massive creature rose behind Knuckles, and everyone gulped.

"Yeah." Sonic said. "You do that." At this, the Freedom Fighters all bolted.

Knuckles nodded, and turned to face easily the most ugly individual he had ever seen. Not to mention one of the largest.

The creature was a massive anthropomorphic rhinoceros, easily about seven foot five, and looking like he weighed well over four-hundred pounds. His entire body was layer upon layer of thick muscle, and save for the torn orange prison trousers covering his legs, he was without clothing. His face was a grotesque thing that only a mother could love, covered with all forms of scars and whatnot, and the horn that protruded from the rhinoceros' snout was snapped clear off. Squinty eyes glared back at Knuckles, who looked greatly affronted.

"Have you no sense of personal hygiene?" Knuckles asked, just before the rhino attacked.

* * *

 _ **Outside the city, entrance to the sewers…**_

"Everybody, don't stop moving!" Amy called out as she, Team Rose, and the soldiers they had found helped funnel the people they had rescued out of the sewers. They had escaped with a good number of around fifty civilians, which included Sasha. The people they had rescued were mainly orphans or young adults, with some of the females in the group evidently in various stages of pregnancy, but none more advanced as Sasha, whom Amy had yet to spot in the flux of civilians desperate to leave the city.

Soon, she finally sighted the young female wolf, who was looking out for her. "Sasha!" Amy called out, waving her hands to show Sasha where she was.

Sasha turned to see her, and her face lit up. The mother-to-be quickly moved through the crowd to Amy, smiling. "Thanks." She said. "Without you, I doubt-" She didn't finish, as she suddenly stiffened, and felt something trickling down her legs. "Oh no…" She said, her hand on her belly.

"Sasha, what's-" Amy began to ask, but then noticed the water trickling down Sasha's legs. "Oh, brother…"

"My baby… I can feel it coming…" Sasha muttered before she doubled over, grunting in pain. "Ah!"

 _Shit!_ Amy thought as she looked about for any sign of Sasha's brother, Rick. "Rick!"

The lieutenant was nearby instantly. "Oh no… Not now."

"Yes. Now." Sasha said.

"What's the hold up?" The Captain demanded as he trudged over.

"Captain, do you have a medic with you?" Amy asked.

"Yeah. Alice over there." The Captain said, pointing at a female fox nearby as he then inquired: "Why?"

"Uh, because we have a woman about to give birth here." Amy pointed out.

The Captain, now realising the problem, muttered several curse words under his breath as he barked: "Get Medical Officer Alice here now!"

* * *

 _ **With Roman…**_

Roman jumped back to evade a blow that would have made him involuntarily commit seppuku and parried a jab that would have left him like Roth. As he was expecting, Alec's skills were still as sharp as ever, just like the sword he was wielding. Blocking yet another blow, Roman countered with a vicious slash that would have easily cut Alec in half had Alec not leaped back to avoid such a fate.

Alec gritted his teeth and closed the distance again, stabbing at Roman's belly, but then suddenly twisting away and slashing at Roman's right flank. This was blocked, and Alec found his feet being kicked out from under him. Looking up, Alec saw Roman standing there, lightsaber at the ready.

"Sorry for denying you the chance to draw blood, but I've been cut there once already. Wasn't fun." Roman said.

"Too bad. I'll just have to find somewhere else to strike you down." Alec replied darkly as he renewed his attack.

Roman parried Alec's attempt to cut him from shoulder to hip and countered with a slash to Alec's face, nicking his cheek.

Alec winced as he backed off, looking up. "That was a lucky hit."

"I guess that was." Roman said.

"But since it's clear we can't settle this with our blades." Alec said as he threw aside his sword and assumed a fighting position. "Then how about we settle this with our fists instead?"

Roman smirked as he switched off his lightsaber and attached it to his belt, taking off his jacket as well. Giving Alec a once over, Roman reasoned: _His advantage is that metal arm of his. My advantage is his determination to kill me._

Alec quickly made the first move, charging Roman and throwing a punch. With his metal arm.

Roman dodged the blow and countered with a right hand that caught Alec on the jaw, knocking the assassin back, and forcing him onto the back foot. Closing with Alec, Roman pressed his advantage, doubling Alec over with a side kick to the gut and followed it up with a left hook to Alec's face, bloodying the hitman's nose.

Alec staggered back, wiped the blood from his nose and looked at it. Looking back up, he growled: "You motherfucker." before charging the vulpine Jedi again, but adopting a different approach, surprising Roman with a kick to the gut, and then spinning around and hitting Roman in the jaw with a spin-kick.

Roman staggered back a matter of paces, facing his adversary once again. "Glad that happened. I was beginning to worry that you'd grown soft in the six months we've not seen each other in."

"You should be glad I'm going easy on you." Alec replied. "Cause I promise, you will die tonight." At this, Alec charged again, launching himself into an impressive series of kicks, in an effort to throw Roman off balance.

Roman dodged all of them, but as he rose to his full height after dodging a roundhouse, Roman received the full force of Alec's new metal fist being smashed into his jaw. Promptly, he toppled to the floor, dazed.

Alec smiled as he drew one of his pistols, and pointed it at Roman's head, saying: "Any last words?"

Roman snapped out of his dazed stupor and smirked. "Yeah. You should make sure your enemy's defeated entirely first before you try and kill them." With this, he kicked up with his left foot, kicking Alec's blaster from the assassin's hand. Jumping up, he grabbed Alec's left arm, the one that still had living tissue, and dragged Alec down, gripping Alec's wrist with his right hand. Twisting and forcing it away from him, Roman slipped his left arm through the crook of Alec's arm, and gripped his right wrist, following it up by locking his legs around Alec's waist, locking in his favourite form of an arm lock, a Kimura.

Alec winced in pain at this development in the fight, and tried to fight out, resorting to punching Roman's flank, trying to weaken the hold.

Roman didn't let up though, and simply applied more pressure.

Alec shouted in pain at this point, and tried again to weaken Roman's grip. But that was before he felt the bones in his arm and elbow break as Roman jerked Alec's arm in a way it was not supposed to go.

With a roar of pain, Alec found himself being let go, so he rolled away, muttering oaths under his breath.

Roman got to his feet and walked up, saying: "And now you'll likely get another mechanical arm. You're welcome." At this, Roman turned and walked into the castle.

* * *

 _ **Inside, with Knuckles…**_

 _Why is it always me?_ Knuckles wondered to himself as he found himself being flung into a wall halfway across the room. Colliding with said wall, he sank down to the floor, shaking his head to clear it.

His adversary, the massive rhinoceros, lumbered over and made to pick him up.

Knuckles stopped him by kicking at the rhino's left knee, unbalancing the brute, and getting to his feet, instantly connecting with a fierce right hand to the rhino's jaw.

The rhino took the hit, but it hardly fazed him, as he only spat out a tooth and some blood.

"Crap…" Knuckles muttered before the rhino retaliated with a rocket launcher of an uppercut, which sent Knuckles off his feet and flying across the room. The red echidna groaned as he looked up, seeing the rhino stepping towards him and reaching out.

But suddenly, the rhino heard a familiar voice say:  
"And cheap shot!"

Before the rhino could react, he felt a very distinct pain in a very distinct place. Promptly, the rhino crumpled to the side.

Knuckles looked up at his saviour. "About time, Roman." Knuckles said.

"Sorry. Fighting Alec's a bitch. And so's fighting this guy." Roman said as he jerked a thumb towards the rhino. Walking up, Roman shouted: "Argo! As stinky and disgustingly ugly as I remember! How're your balls?"

"You motherfucker…" Argo muttered as he forced himself to his feet.

Roman backed up a little bit, holding up his hands in a placating manner. "Now, Argo, little quiz: Who won the last time you and I took on each other?"

"You got lucky that night, Roman." Argo spat. "And now you're gonna pay."

"Funny. Alec said the same. And now he's outside with his _other_ arm fucked." Roman retorted.

"I'm not Alec." Argo replied as he promptly charged Roman.

The vulpine Jedi also charged, but slid under Argo and made the rhino somehow flip onto his back. "Why didn't I think of that last time?" Roman asked himself as he watched Argo get back to his feet. His eyes narrowed at Argo's prison trousers, and his eyes narrowed in disgust. "Yuck. You really need to change those trousers, Argo. They are so not your style."

"Shut up." Argo replied angrily.

"Just trying to help so that you actually manage to pull some women next time you hang around town." Roman said. "And you might want to look behind you."

"Now why would I listen to that?" Argo said before a large two-by-four was smashed over his head. His face fell into one of confusion, and he promptly toppled to the floor, out cold.

Knuckles took a deep breath. "How in the name of Chaos did you manage to flip the dude over like you did?"

"Simple physics, Knuckles. Argo's size will always be his downfall." Roman said. "Now, how about we head to the throne room and blow this fucking joint?"

"Good idea." The crimson coloured echidna said as he and Roman started walking.

* * *

 _ **Outside the city…**_

"Get this baby out of me!" Sasha shouted as she felt another seizing pain rise through her nervous system.

"I know it hurts, Sasha, but in order for your baby to be born, you need to push!" Medical Officer Alice said.

"You can do this, Sasha, I know you can." Amy said to the labouring young wolf.

"Easy for you to say." Sasha replied. "Wait until you're in this predicament." Sasha replied before letting out a moan of pain.

Alice peeked under the sheet someone had kindly draped over Sasha's lower waist to preserve her privacy. Looking back up, she said: "Okay Sasha, the head is nearly out. Give us another push, and we'll go on from there."

Sasha nodded before she tightened her grip and nodding. "I'm ready."

"Okay, one, two, three, _push!"_ Alice said.

Sasha obliged, grimacing as she felt the nigh-unbearable pain before letting out an agonised shriek. "Fuck!" Sasha cussed.

"Great job, Sasha! The head's entirely out. Just bear with me for a few seconds." Alice said as she probed the area around the baby's head and neck, checking that the umbilical cord wasn't wrapped around the infant's neck, or that nothing else was encumbering its way out of Sasha.

"Is everything okay?" Sasha asked.

Alice nodded. "All's well, Sasha. All we need is one more big push and your child will be here."

Sasha nodded as she prepared herself again, taking a deep breath.

Amy patted Sasha on the back, saying: "Don't give up now, Sasha. You're doing perfectly."

Sasha nodded thanks before gripping Amy's hand tighter.

"One more, Sasha. One more." Alice said as she reached underneath the sheet, carefully grabbing the baby's head. "On three again: One…"

Sasha gathered her strength and took a deep breath.

"Two…" Alice said.

Sasha's grip on Amy's hand tightened and she gritted her teeth.

"Three… Push!" Alice barked.

Sasha instantly pushed, doing her best to ignore the growing pain, which battered against her will as if somebody was slowly crushing her body. But despite that, she could not hold it off for too long, and she let out one last agonised scream.

But then the pain disappeared completely.

The next sound Sasha and that heard was the sound of a newborn baby's first few bouts of breath as the child let out an unmistakeable bleat. "Is it okay?" Sasha asked.

Alice didn't respond, clearly doing something with the child first before handing the baby to Sasha. "Say hello to your daughter."

The moment she saw her newborn daughter, tears of joy fell down Sasha's face as she said: "She's perfect…"

"Little side note: Most babies are." Amy joked, causing Alice to chuckle. Amy then looked towards the city, wondering how her friends within the city were handling things.

* * *

 _ **Castle Acorn…**_

"Roman!" Ashley shouted as she started towards the eponymous vulpine Jedi.

"Ash!" Roman called out as he caught her in his arms and kissed her.

Breaking the kiss, Ashley asked. "What took you so long?"

"Blame a certain large, seven-foot-five rhino that reeks of excrement and piss named Argo." Roman said.

Ashley giggled. "How did he react to seeing you again?"

"As he would. Didn't help that I tossed a few insults about his standard of hygiene and choices of clothing." Roman added.

Ashley chortled. "You are ridiculous. You know that?"

"But you love me for it." Roman said as he kissed Ashley again.

Sally smiled as she watched this little scene unfold before saying: "As much as I hate to break things up, we need to go."

As if on cue, a red blade burst through the main door that led into the throne room, and began to cut through.

"Now." Sally quickly added as she ran to a part of the throne room, pulling on the arm of a suit of armour nearby.

Instantly, a large part of the wall to the right of the throne and next to the suit of armour Sally had just touched, collapsed and slid away, revealing a dark cavernous doorway.

Walking up to the door, Roman beckoned everyone in, just as the door being cut through was kicked down, several Stormtroopers rushing in and opening fire. Roman returned fire instantly, downing two of them as a familiar black-clad figure came into view.

Roman inhaled sharply. "Elias…"

The King turned to Roman at the name, and looked to the door, gazing upon his son instantly.

Upon the sight of his father again, Elias' first thought was how well his father had aged. He dispelled that thought from mind as he commanded: "Stop them!"

Stormtroopers moved to intercept, but they were felled by a familiar fox's blaster.

"Not happening, asshole!" Roman said as he fired several more shots, this time at Elias.

Activating his lightsaber, Elias deflected the shots, managing to redirect one at Roman, catching him in the shoulder.

Roman grunted as the bolt hit him in the centre of his shoulder, severing numerous crucial nerve endings. His blaster fell from his hand and he shrunk back, calling it back to his hand via the Force. He made to open fire again, but he felt a firm hand drag him through the doorway.

"We need to go _now!"_ Sally chided as she hit the button that closed the door.

Roman obliged, but turned to look to Elias as the door slid shut. The last visage he had of Elias was of the Grand Inquisitor rushing the door.

* * *

 _ **With Elias and the Imperials…**_

"Blast!" Elias snapped as the door shut.

"That went well." Said the Female Inquisitor as she entered the room, flanked by Frederick and Eggman.

Turning to his men, Elias said: "Search the area. I want that door opened ASAP!" At this, he turned to face the Female Inquisitor as she approached. "Why have you left the Forward Operations Base? I gave you specific orders not to follow me!"

"Well, Lord Vader ordered me to assist you. He reasoned you could use the help." The Female Inquisitor replied.

Elias scowled as he said: "So, he thinks I need your help? Well, here's how you can do so: Search the area, and find the mechanism that opens that door!"

"If you say so." The Female Inquisitor said as she walked over to a nearby suit of armour and pulled on the arm.

Promptly, the door opened.

Elias was taken aback. "How did you do that?"

"I was a thief before I was an Inquisitor, Grand Inquisitor. I know a mechanism that opens a secret door when I see one."

Elias nodded thanks before saying: "Secure the rest of the castle. I will pursue our targets."

"Alone?" The Female Inquisitor asked.

"This is something I must do alone." Elias replied.

"Sir, at least bring a small detachment with you." Major Aryn requested.

"Very well." Elias said. Motioning to the platoon that was with them, Elias motioned with his finger. "Inside the passage. Now."

The Stormtroopers obeyed their orders without question, entering the passageway.

"You too, Major, since you were so insistent." Elias said.

Major Aryn nodded and followed the Stormtroopers within the passageway.

Elias made to enter, but turned to face the Female Inquisitor before he did, saying: "I won't be long." before he too entered the passageway, determined to achieve his goal.

* * *

 _ **Not too long later…**_

"Move, move, move!" Roman shouted at everyone in front of him as blaster bolts from the pursuing Stormtroopers flew past him. Turning, Roman returned fire, hearing a cry or two in return. He lay down some further suppressing fire before turning and running after his friends. He soon exited the tunnel leading out of Mobotropolis, revealing a small crevasse overlooking a river that gave some of its water to the moat at the front of Castle Acorn. Leading to the other side of the crevasse was a bridge, which was large, but narrow, so narrow, that any group crossing would have to be in single file, and narrow enough that any wrong step would cast any unlucky individual into the rapidly raging river.

Before he could do anything else, blaster fire cascaded past him, discharging into the floor near him. Muttering curses under his breath, Roman took cover, alongside Tails, and the two of them started returning fire.

As they did this, Roman turned to Sally and said: "Get your dad across the bridge! We'll follow you!"

Sally nodded and motioned to her father to go in front of her as they made the trip across.

The other Freedom Fighters soon followed her direction, until all were across.

Sally called out to Roman and Tails: "We're across! Come on!"

Roman turned to see this, and motioned to Tails, who started running across the bridge. Roman followed, but not before laying down some covering fire.

Promptly, Stormtroopers began filing out of the passageway, firing on the Freedom Fighters as they all took cover.

Sonic made to make a run for it, but was jerked back by Sally.

"We'll get chewed up if we do that. We need to take their forces down just enough so that we can make a run for the Chaotix's ship." Sally advised her husband.

Sonic reluctantly nodded, and hugged the wall again.

King Acorn chanced a look from cover, and his heart skipped a beat.

Elias had stepped out from the passageway, looking at the surrounding area.

Returning behind cover to avoid a stray shot headed right at him, King Acorn debated whether he should do what he had considered doing since Sally had informed him of Elias being the Grand Inquisitor. He imagined what his late wife, Elias and Sally's mother, would say. Hardening his face, The King emerged from cover, bellowing at the top of his lungs: _**"ENOUGH!"**_

* * *

"Cease fire!" Elias barked at his men, who obliged.

An uneasy silence fell upon the two sides, though this was broken by Sally demanding:

"Dad, what are you doing?!"

King Acorn held up a hand to silence his daughter, but kept his gaze very much affixed on his son.

Underneath his mask, Elias smiled. "King Acorn. I've been looking forward to this moment for a long time."

King Acorn caught the double meaning of Elias' words, but said nothing, instead starting forward across the bridge. "Take off that mask, boy." He said. "You don't need it. Not here. Not with me."

Elias raised his eyebrow underneath his mask until he too crossed the bridge, replying: "What do you think you'll see if I do?"

King Acorn clenched his fists and replied: "The face of my son."

Elias stiffened at this, while the Stormtroopers at his back glanced at each other, murmuring to themselves, and Major Aryn's eyes widened. Elias remarked this for a second, but returned his gaze to the King, nodding and removing his mask.

King Acorn's breath caught in his throat as he laid eyes upon his son for the first time since Elias had been but a boy.

"Your son is _dead."_ Elias snarled. "He was weak and foolish. So I destroyed him and remade him, stronger than he _ever_ was in his old life."

"So that's what they've led you to believe." King Acorn replied. He was now extremely close to his son, mere metres away from him.

"It is." Elias said. "And they're right. Emperor Palpatine is wise. As is Lord Vader. They sent me to deal with the problems plaguing this planet, and I intend to fulfil their wishes."

"They are only using you for the power you hold within." King Acorn protested. "Once they are finished, they will discard you like you did with toys that no longer interested you. You and I both know that."

Elias' fists clenched. He refused to admit as much.

King Acorn sighed and surprised Elias by placing his hands on Elias' shoulders. "Elias, I know you and I have not always seen eye to eye, but things do not have to be as they are currently. Come home, where you truly belong. I've missed you terribly since I heard of your absence. Come home, and give me a chance to be the father I should have been years ago."

Elias, seeing his father's contrition, tightened his already clenched fists, so much so that were he not wearing gloves, his nails would have certainly broke skin and drawn blood. Furthermore, he felt a sensation he had not felt in years: That of fresh tears on his cheek, as he fought to contain his emotions. Turning his back on his father to hide this, he asked: "You would forgive me? After everything?"

"Yes, my son." King Acorn replied. "What type of father would I be if I could not find it within me to forgive the sins of my son?"

Elias turned, and he faced his father once more, his head bowed in contrition as he took his father by the shoulder. "Then I'm sure you'll forgive me for this." At this, he grabbed his lightsaber, activated it, and plunged it into his father's chest.

* * *

Upon seeing this, the Freedom Fighters all jumped slightly, gasping considerably.

" _ **Motherfucker!"**_ Roman shouted.

" _ **NO!"**_ Sally screamed.

Elias pushed his lightsaber further into his father's chest, burying it up to the hilt. As he did this, he pulled his father closer into an embrace, much like he had done with Roth hours earlier. "You may forgive me," Elias snarled, "but I will _never,_ _ **ever,**_ forgive you for not being there for me when I needed you the most." With this last message, he tore his lightsaber free from his father, taking his hand off of the King's shoulder.

Sally watched this with a tearful expression, managing to sob: "No…"

King Acorn staggered back a little, his gaze still on the Mobian who up until now had been his son, his expression one of shock. Now, all he saw were the eyes of a monster. Staggering forward, he reached out, managing to brush his son's face for a final fleeting moment before toppling over the side of the bridge, falling into the depths of the river below the bridge.

Elias watched as the body fell, resolving to search for it later. Turning to face the Freedom Fighters, Elias said: "The King is dead! Long live the King!"

Sally's fists clenched as she heard him mock the time honoured phrase used to say the King or Queen had passed.

Elias continued: "The King can't save you now." Turning to the Stormtroopers, he commanded: "Finish them!"

At this, the Stormtroopers resumed fire.

* * *

Roman had had enough. Throwing down his blaster, he took his lightsaber, and took position at the end of the bridge that the Freedom Fighters were on.

"Roman, what are you doing?!" Ashley shouted over the din.

Roman turned to face Ashley and flashed a smile, one that conveyed one message: _I love you._ Then, he activated his lightsaber and charged across the bridge, where Elias stood.

"Roman, no!" Ashley called out, but by then, it was too late.

Elias intercepted Roman's inaugural strike and pushed him away, launching a counterattack, with an overhead slash meant to divide Roman in two vertically.

Roman parried the blow, and countered with a left hook that he augmented with the Force, sending Elias flying back a few paces.

Getting to his feet, Elias blocked the blow that would have severed his head from his neck, and parried another that would have slashed him across the torso, retaliating with a left hand of his own to Roman's jaw, knocking him to the side. Pressing his offensive, Elias crosscut for Roman's torso, but this was blocked. Growing frustrated at his failure to end the duel early, Elias launched his next attack, which involved a mixture of stabs and slashes, ending with an attempt to slash at Roman's legs with the intent of removing said limbs.

Roman parried all of the attacks save for the slash to his legs, countering this by jumping over Elias as the blow nearly struck, and responded with a slash at the back of Elias' neck.

The Grand Inquisitor spun to meet his strike, blocking it and locking their blades.

"You've killed enough people today." Roman snarled. "I'm _not_ letting you take another life."

"That depends on whether that life's _yours!"_ Elias replied, head-butting Roman in the face, pressing his attack by lunging for Roman, whose chest was exposed.

Roman sidestepped the strike and backed away, back onto the bridge.

Elias followed, continuing to attack with a slash at Roman's midsection, which was blocked. Elias followed the attempt with another slash, this time at Roman's throat, spinning away when this was blocked as well and slashing downwards at Roman, intending to split him in two via the shoulder.

Sidestepping the blow, Roman kicked at Elias' knee, buckling it and driving him to one knee before slashing at Elias' neck, in another effort to behead him.

Elias rolled underneath the slash and crosscut for Roman's head, hoping to deal a death-blow in that manner.

Roman parried, doing the same with Elias' next attack, which was directed at his shoulder. He followed the last parry by fiercely elbowing Elias square in the face.

Staggering away from the surprising blow, Elias barely blocked the next attack from Roman, directed at his chest, and attempted to counter with an overhead slash, meant to cleave Roman in two from head to toe.

Roman blocked the blow, and their blades remained locked there, both men pushing against the other.

Meantime, the Freedom Fighters and the Stormtroopers were trading blaster fire across the crevasse, among them Ashley, who had just downed a Stormtrooper when she heard Knuckles shout:

"The Chaotix are here! If we're gonna get out of here, now's the time!"

Sally heard this and motioned with her hand, the sting of tears still fresh against her cheek. "Freedom Fighters, let's move!"

The Freedom Fighters all obliged, save for Tails and Ashley, the latter of whom shouted: "Roman! We need to leave!"

The vulpine Jedi turned, and he saw what was going on, at the expense of his attention on Elias, who pushed his way out of the blade lock.

Elias, seeing the opening, instantly kicked upwards, knocking Roman's lightsaber out of his hand. Seizing the chance, he followed that with an upward slash, which caught Roman on the right hip, slicing Roman open from there to his left shoulder, the force of the blow forcing Roman to do a one-eighty degree turn.

" _ **NO!"**_ Ashley and Tails both shouted at the top of their lungs.

Roman sank to his knees, staring at Tails and Ashley as if in a trance.

Elias stepped forwards, eyeing both Ashley and Tails. His face devoid of any emotion, he simply said: "Witness hell." With this, he reared back, and drove his lightsaber up to the hilt into Roman's back, the crimson blade bursting out of the vulpine Jedi's chest.

Ashley fought back tears as she watched, her hands over her mouth and nose.

" _No…"_ Tails sobbed, also fighting back tears.

Elias tore his blade out of Roman, and to rub salt into the wound, kicked Roman off the side, sending the vulpine into the depths.

" _You bastard!"_ Ashley shrieked as she fired shot after shot at Elias, who simply blocked the bolts headed his way, finally retaliating with a Force Push that sent Ashley sprawling.

Tails, seeing Roman's lightsaber having fallen nearby, called it to his hand and buckled it to his belt, alongside Roman's blaster, which he had already. Helping Ashley to her feet, Tails dragged her away, saying; "We have to go!"

Elias watched them leave before shaking his head, switching off his lightsaber, and walking back inside. He had done enough for one day.

* * *

 **For those of you who have seen the Force Awakens, you'll recognise a couple of scenes similar to it in this chapter, but with a few differences.**

 **Other than that, please leave your reviews, and May the Force be with you. Always.**

 **T-Rock14**


	18. Chapter 18: Mourning the Fallen

**Chapter 18: Mourning the Fallen**

 _ **The Emerald, 6:30 pm**_

"We need to leave now!"

"No!" Knuckles snapped at Vector. "We are _not_ leaving Roman, Ashley _or_ Tails behind!"

As if on cue, Tails and Ashley emerged from around the corner, sprinting for the ship. Both appeared to be fighting back tears.

"Where's Roman?" Knuckles demanded as the duo came up.

Neither responded, with Tails saying: "Let's go." as they headed into the ship.

Knuckles and Vector shared a look before also entering the ship.

Upon entering, they found everyone crowding around Tails and Ashley.

"Thank the Goddess you're all alive!" Sally said as she hugged Tails. "Is everyone alright?"

"Yeah, we're fine." Tails said, trying to mask the sadness in his voice.

Sally noted this, and her eyes, still puffy from crying over the death of her father, narrowed. "What's wrong Tails?" She asked. She suddenly noticed that Roman was not present. "Where's Roman?"

Tails said nothing, sighing.

"Tails, what happened to Roman?" Sally asked.

Tails still refused to speak, but his expression told Sally all she needed to know.

"No…" Sally gasped. "Not Roman too…"

Everyone's eyes widened at this, as Tails sadly nodded, clearly fighting tears.

"No!" Sally wailed, fresh tears starting to fall as she started sobbing. "He can't be dead! He can't be!"

Sonic, also now crying, took his wife into his arms, and just held her there while she cried long, deep heaving sobs.

Soon, everyone was in tears, from Sally to even Shadow, who shed a single tear. The raw emotion in the hold was immense, so much so that were anyone passing by would have likely started crying as well, the same with any animals that came by.

Finally, after some time, Sally calmed down enough to turn to face Tails, with one question on her mind: "How?"

"He was still fighting Elias when we started to fall back." Tails answered. "Me and Ashley called out to him to get his attention, but in doing so, we shifted the fight in Elias' favour, and as a result, Elias was able to disarm Roman and deal the coup-de-grace. I'll spare you the details. Elias just kicked him into the river afterwards. I had to drag Ashley away before she got us both killed." Taking Roman's lightsaber from his belt, he held it out. "However, along with his blaster, I was able to recover this."

Gingerly, Sally took the weapon from Tails and ignited it, seeing the blue blade illuminate everyone in the room. "The last time I held this lightsaber was when Roman gave it to me for safekeeping." She said, smiling sadly. "And now he's gone." Turning off the lightsaber, she made to hand it to Tails, but Tails stopped her, saying:

"He told me he wanted you to have it if anything happened to him." Tails said.

Sally looked down at the lightsaber, and reluctantly hooked it to her belt. Letting a few more tears fall, she said: "Take us away, Shade. Get us out of here."

* * *

 _ **Inside Castle Acorn, Royal Communications Room.**_

"Your impressive record continues to remain that way, Grand Inquisitor." The hologram of Darth Vader said to the kneeling Elias, now with his mask back on. "Well done."

"Thank you Lord Vader." Elias replied.

"It comes as no surprise to me that you were able to accomplish your mission." Vader said. "Though the death of the King will be an issue."

"I planned things from the start, Lord Vader." Elias replied. "I would kill the Jedi at Artika Prison, which succeeded, release Eggman, and lead an assault on Mobotropolis to depose the King and return Eggman to power. That way, we have our own person on the throne, and we can rule the planet. All that needs to be done is for the remaining continents to be conquered, and then Mobius will become part of the Empire."

"Impressive plan." Vader complimented. "But your work is not yet done. The child still lives. You must now switch your focus to hunting down and killing him."

"He is of no threat to us, Lord Vader." Elias replied. "He is but a boy."

"I would not be so certain, Grand Inquisitor." Vader warned. "It was not long ago that I underestimated a boy, and that mistake nearly cost me my life. Hunt him down, Inquisitor, and kill him. Then, and only then, will Mobius be secure."

"It will be done, my lord." Elias said.

"See to it that it is." Vader said as his visage dissipated.

Elias rose from his kneeling position and removed his mask. He was aware that his work was not yet done on Mobius. He still had Tails to kill. He still doubted the boy would pose a problem, but that was a question that would be answered another time.

"Enjoy your conversation with Lord Vader?"

Elias turned to see the Female Inquisitor walking towards him. "I did. He insists the boy is a threat, which is unlikely, as he no longer has someone to teach him the ways of the Force. And a Padawan without a master, cannot ever become a true Jedi."

"He could still pose a threat. I fought him during the sacking of Artika Prison, and he was surprisingly well versed with his lightsabers." The Female Inquisitor said.

"You sound a strong point." Elias said as he stepped closer to her. "Very well. If you insist the boy is a threat, then the moment he and the Freedom Fighters start to wreak havoc, as I am certain they will, let me know immediately so we can work to stop the Freedom Fighters from becoming as big a threat as they did when Eggman was first in power." At this, he left the room, many thoughts plaguing his mind.

* * *

 _ **Outside Mobotropolis…**_

"Over here!" Amy called out as the Chaotix's transport passed overhead. But when she did, she heard Sally's voice on the com-link:

"Sorry, Ames. You're going to need to wait a little longer." Sally said. "We're pretty much full at the moment. Believe me, we'll get you and your team out, but for now, just sit tight."

Amy nodded. "We will. Be as quick as possible, please."

"We'll try." Sally said as the connection cut.

Amy sighed as she turned and walked to where the main group was: Cream was currently lying next to Sasha, messing around with Sasha's baby girl. Big was currently fishing at the stream, even though there was nothing there pretty much. The rest of the group were huddled together guarded by the Royal Army soldiers.

Cream looked up to see Amy. "Is everything okay?" She asked.

"Sally said they were too full. We need to just sit tight." Amy replied as she too sat down, on Sasha's other side to look at Sasha's hour-old daughter.

Swaddled in a blanket, the infant's face was the only thing that was visible. When Amy looked straight into the child's eyes, warm green eyes like her mother's looked back.

"Have you decided on a name yet?" Amy asked.

"Rose." Sasha replied.

Amy smiled as she scooted closer, gently poking the baby girl on the nose, making the little one giggle. "After me, I presume."

Sasha smiled. "No. I felt it was a good name."

"It is." Amy said. Looking over to Cream, she asked: "How're you holding up?"

"I'm feeling better." Cream said. "I just already miss her." At this, tears started falling.

Amy smiled sweetly as she scooted around and placed a comforting hand on her best friend's shoulder. "Hey. No need to cry. Vanilla wouldn't want that. And besides, you still have me and Big."

Cream nodded sadly. "True. But she was still my mother."

Amy nodded understanding and said: "If it helps, I miss her too. I think everyone does. Especially Roman."

"You think he still feels guilty?" Cream asked.

"Cream, Vanilla died saving him. It's more than likely that it's still eating away at him, even though you absolved him of the blame."

Cream nodded. "I guess. I'll talk to him when we get to Angel Island."

"Yeah. Then you can really clear things up with him." Amy said. The two friends turned and watched as the sun started to rise over the horizon, heralding in a new day.

* * *

 _ **The Chaotix's ship…**_

Sally walked in to find Ashley sitting by herself, the others clearly giving her some space. Frowning, she walked over, placing an arm around her. "Hey. You alright?"

Ashley faintly nodded, tears still crawling down her cheeks.

Sally pulled her closer. "Try to let go. Roman wouldn't want you beating yourself up about this."

"How would you know?!" Ashley snapped, making everyone jump. "You weren't even there!"

Sally sighed. "I know because Roman faced a _lot_ of situations that almost killed him. Every time he went into a battle, he always told us that no matter what, he'd always be with us." She reached out, and placed a hand over Ashley's heart. "Right _here."_

Ashley placed her own hand over her heart, remembering Roman: The countless times he'd made her laugh with some remark or a prank he pulled on Vanilla, the times where he'd comforted her when she was down. But the memory that burned most in her mind was of the night before, when Roman had made love to her. That, and all those memories of the past year, made a smile slowly form on her face.

"See?" Sally said. "He'll always be there."

Ashley nodded, turning to face Sally. "How're you holding up? Last I checked, you watched your own brother murder your father."

Sally sighed. "Elias isn't my brother. Not anymore."

"I thought so." Ashley said.

"I'm not lying. That backstabbing bastard said so himself. The Elias I knew is dead. And the Elias I know now is dead to me." She sighed, and took Roman's lightsaber from her belt, staring at it. The weapon stared back up at her, as if wondering whether its new owner would treat it with as much respect as its former owner did.

Sally stared at it for a matter of seconds before turning and handing it to Ashley. "Here. It should be yours."

Ashley shook her head. "No. Roman wanted _you_ to have it. And if that's what he wanted, then I'm not arguing. That weapon is yours now." As she said this, they heard Shade's voice over the comm:

"Everyone, this is your pilot speaking. We'll be landing in a few moments, so get ready to disembark. This baby needs to be refuelled, and then we can get back to start extracting the people Amy and Team Rose managed to rescue."

Sally got up, and so did Ashley, just as Shade's ship landed. They watched as the others got up, and the two friends soon left the ship.

* * *

 _ **Castle Acorn…**_

Elias stepped into the room to find everyone sitting at what had been the Acorn Council table, prepared to discuss what would happen next.

"Take a seat, Grand Inquisitor." Eggman said.

Elias nodded, and walked over, sitting down.

Frederick soon broached the subject of the meeting: "So, what next?"

"I've only recently been in conversation with the Emperor himself." Eggman declared. "And as a reward for my assistance of the Empire, I am to assume the position of this planet's governor. All of you are subservient to _me_ now."

At this, Elias glared at him hostilely. "That's not what I heard."

Eggman sweat-dropped "A-Aside from the Inquisitors of course. They will be allowed to operate on their own, as they have a separate mission, which is to hunt down any Jedi on this planet. So as of this moment, they are allowed to access any resources possible in order to find their target and neutralise them."

"That was what I heard." Elias said.

"And what role will I play in this new government?" Frederick asked.

"This planet will need to be controlled." Eggman said. "So Frederick, I'm instilling a secret police force, something _you_ will be in charge of."

Frederick smiled. "So, that's how it is going to be. I will command the secret police. Will Alec and Argo be involved?"

"Yes. Alec will serve as the person we choose to kill those people I deem too dangerous to keep alive, and Argo will serve as the interrogator. Or should I say, torturer." Eggman said.

"Positions I'm certain my men would enjoy, Argo especially." Frederick replied. "But what of your Egg-Army? What purpose will _they_ serve in this new regime?"

"They will serve as the standard police force, which you will also command." Eggman answered. "The Stormtroopers we have with us are to strictly remain a military force only, to be deployed only when there is a major uprising or something of that kind. Furthermore, my Egg-Army will receive training by Imperial forces, so that they may be better placed to serve me, and the people."

"So, it's an iron fist approach to start with?" Elias asked.

"What else? Such things are needed when you take control of a major country." Eggman said.

"G.U.N will pose a problem." Frederick pointed out.

"A problem we will crush like the bug it is." Eggman declared. "G.U.N may think it is still the dominant military force on Planet Mobius, but we will prove them wrong." Turning to Elias, he asked: "How many Star Destroyers do you have in orbit?"

"Several. All containing numerous Stormtrooper Legions." Elias replied.

Eggman nodded. "Then perhaps it is time to put all plans for government aside, and focus on taking over this planet."

All present nodded, and talk quickly shifted to plans of a military kind.

* * *

 _ **Angel Island, 8:30 am**_

Amy descended the steps of the Emerald to find Sally and Sonic waiting for them.

"Welcome back." Sally said.

"Good to be back, Sally." Amy replied, just as she noticed Sasha stepping out of the transport. "Excuse me for one moment." Amy said as she walked over, helping Sasha down. "Everything okay?"

"Yes, thank you." Sasha said.

"Good." Amy said as she ushered Sasha over to where her brother Rick was standing. Then, she walked over to where Sally was.

"Who was that?" Sally asked curiously.

"A new friend. Her name's Sasha. She's only recently given birth to her daughter." Amy said.

Sally smiled sadly. "Well, where the Goddess closes one door, she opens another."

Amy's eyes narrowed inquisitively. "What do you mean? Vanilla?"

Sally shook her head. "No. My dad."

Amy's eyes widened. "What?"

"Elias killed him. Dad was trying to get Elias to abandon the Dark Side." Sally elaborated, a few tears falling. "Elias responded with a lightsaber to the chest."

"Oh Sally, I'm so sorry!" Amy exclaimed, hugging Sally.

"It's nothing, now." Sally said, wiping her eyes. "He's in a better place now, with my mother and my ancestors." She noticed Cream walking up and walked over. "Cream!"

Cream noticed Sally and walked over, saying: "Something wrong, Princess?"

"No." Sally said. After a few seconds, Sally added: "I'm sorry about your mother, Cream."

Cream nodded as more tears fell. "Thank you, Princess. I'll be fine." Wiping her eyes, Cream quickly looked around before asking: "Is Roman close by? I need to talk to him."

Sally's expression tightened at the mention of Roman's name.

Cream noticed this and asked: "Something wrong?" Even though the answer tugged at her subconsciousness.

Sally sighed as she knelt down. "Cream, as much as I hate to tell you this now, especially since your mother's died, but… Roman's gone as well."

* * *

Amy and Cream's eyes widened, especially Cream's.

"W-What?" Cream choked, fresh tears threatening to fall.

"He died holding off the enemy while the rest of us escaped. Both Ashley and Tails saw him die." Sally said, tears also threatening to fall.

Cream backed away, holding her head in her hands. "No… Not Roman too…" Finally, she just instantly hugged Sally, crying fiercely into Sally's shoulder.

Sally finally started crying too, both girls emptying their emotional banks at Roman's loss.

Amy was also shedding tears. "He can't be… He was so tough, I thought nothing would kill him."

"Nobody's invincible, Amy." Came the voice of Sonic as the cerulean hedgehog walked over. "We suffered huge during that battle. Vanilla, King Acorn, Roman… They're all gone."

Cream extricated herself from Sally's grip and said tearfully: "Now I'll never get the chance to properly absolve him of any blame for my mother's death."

"I'm sure he already knew that, though being him, he'd never admit it." Sally said with a smile.

Cream smiled sweetly as well, seeing where Sally was coming from.

Sally smiled and patted her by the shoulder, just as she saw Big approaching, carrying what had to be Vanilla's body.

Sally's face hardened as she called over Knuckles. "Have you any burial places handy?"

Knuckles shook his head. "But we could build a pyre. Give her a send-off that way." Turning to Cream, Knuckles asked: "That sound like something your mom would like?"

Cream sighed. "Mother would have preferred a traditional burial, but as long as we can collect the ashes into some sort of urn, then, I don't see any problem with it."

"Good. I'll see to the preparations." Knuckles said as he left.

Everyone quickly went their separate ways, each mourning those lost in their own ways.

* * *

 _ **That night, 21:00 pm**_

Everyone watched solemnly as the funeral pyre burnt, its flames a signal to anyone watching that respects were being paid to the dead.

Vanilla lay among the flames, peaceful, angelic. It had now been realised how beautiful Vanilla really had been, now that everything that had blemished it had gone from her face.

Sally stood nearby, her arms folded as she watched the conflagration. She could see Cream close to the flames, standing, silently crying as she watched her mother's body burn. Amy was right next to her, a comforting hand on her best friend's shoulder.

Every single Freedom Fighter was there for the funeral, as were the other inhabitants of the village that had been built by Knuckles and the Chaotix as a precaution in case something like the taking of Mobotropolis happened. New Knothole was what it was being called.

Sonic, who was standing next to Sally, asked: "So what now?"

Sally sighed. "What now?" She repeated. "Now, we take time to lick our wounds. And once that is done… Then, we start fighting back. Just like old times."

Sonic nodded, and the cerulean speedster hugged his wife around the waist. New challenges lay ahead, but the couple knew that one day, those challenges would be overcome. Just not yet.

* * *

 _ **Meanwhile, at the banks of a river near Mobotropolis…**_

The two figures ran silently through the trees, not a word escaping their lips. Ever since they had arrived, they had seen evidence of the future they lived in coming to pass. And they knew that simply could not happen.

Finally, one of them spoke: "How will we know when we find him?" Whispered the figure, their voice male.

"We'll know when we see him, Silver." Whispered the other, their voice unmistakeably female.

"So you keep saying, Blaze." Silver replied, taking off the hood covering his head, revealing the visage of a very light grey anthropomorphic hedgehog, almost white, with tan skin and golden coloured eyes. Being a hedgehog, he had several spines covering his head, most notably, the five spines flared up and back at the front of his forehead, with the two final ones mostly covering his ears. Most of his body was covered by the large hooded brown cloak he was wearing, but his gloves were visible, and they were unique, in the manner that they had cyan circles and lines standing out on the palms, leading to the golden bracelets covering his wrists, the lines around them also cyan coloured. His boots were also visible, and they were coloured navy blue, white, and cyan again, with the tops of them decorated similarly to his bracelets, save for the red gem in the middle that was also set in gold. Looking about, Silver said: "Because I don't see him. Maybe he's farther down the river."

"Maybe." Blaze replied. "You know what, I'll take my hood off as well." At this, she pulled off her hood, revealing that of a lilac coloured anthropomorphic cat, with a white muzzle and golden coloured eyes. Her inner ears were peach coloured, and she had plumes of her head-fur with dark purple tips, which she had in a high ponytail, accomplished with a red hairband. On her forehead also was a small red gem. As with Silver, most of Blaze's body was covered by the thick brown cloak she was wearing, save for her gloves and boots. Her gloves were white with fuzzy cuffs, and her boots, which were high heeled, were coloured hot pink and white.

Both Silver and Blaze were about seventeen years of age, but their experience betrayed their youth. Both had been through immense hardship in their time, and their friendship had seen them through.

After a few minutes of walking, they came to a clearing, where the banks of the river looked fine. But it wasn't the banks they had their eyes on, but what was on the banks.

Lying sprawled on the river bank on his back was a red coloured fox, wearing tattered black combat clothes and missing half his right ear. His torso was a mess, with one large diagonal slash running from his left shoulder to his right hip, and a massive hole in his chest.

Blaze let out a gasp as she dashed over, checking the fox's pulse. Looking up, she said: "He's alive. Barely."

Silver nodded and said: "We'd better get him to the hideout." At this, he jogged up, helped Blaze pick up the fox, and carry the fox deep into the forest. They had work to do.

* * *

 **And thus ends The Siege of Artika Prison. Whew, I _really_ enjoyed writing this one. Just as much as I enjoy writing fanfics in general.**

 **The next story in the series will be published shortly, since I am putting my Transformers and Sonic the Hedgehog series on hold to focus on this first, especially since my brain needs decluttering.**

 **Other than that, please leave your reviews (NO FLAMES!), and May the Force be with you. Always.**

 **T-Rock14**


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